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FINE  ARTS 

AND  THE 

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PAVILIONS 


By 
JOHN  D.  BARRY 

cAuthor  of 

"The  City  of  Domes"  and 

"The  Meaning  of  the 

Exposition" 


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THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS  AND  THE 
FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS 


By  the  Same  Author 

THE  CITY  OF  DOMES 

A  Walk  with  an  Architect  About  the  Courts  and  Palaces  of  the 
Panama-Pacific  International  Exposition  with  a  Discussion  of 
its  Architecture,  its  Sculpture,  its  Mural  Decorations,  its  Color- 
ing, and  its  Lighting,  Preceded  by  a  History  of  its  Growth. 

Our  best  all-round  volume  on  the  great  Exposition. — Edwin  Markham. 

It  is  the  art  side,  the  architecture,  the  sculpture,  the  decorations,  the 
coloring  and  lighting,  that  John  D.  Barry  deals  with  in  "The  City  of 
Domes"  in  a  manner  that  is  instructive  and  entertaining.  The  book,  after  it 
has  served  its  present  guide  purpose,  will  have  to  be  consulted  for  any  his- 
torical record  of  the  achievement.  The  pictures  are  admirable. — New  York 
Sun. 

Prospective  visitors  to  the  Panama-Pacific  International  Exposition  will 
be  interested  in  "The  City  of  Domes,"  prepared  by  John  D.  Barry  in  be- 
half of  just  such  readers.  The  body  of  the  book  describes  a  walk  around 
the  courts  and  palaces  with  an  architect,  thus  embodying  much  interesting 
information.  The  introduction  discusses  the  Exposition's  growth  and  pur- 
pose, and  there  are  clever  lists  of  the  features  best  worth  studying,  day  and 
night.  More  than  fifty  illustrations  support  the  text. — Chicago  Herald. 

Mr.  John  D.  Barry's  book  on  the  Exposition  may  be  confidently  recom- 
mended to  visitors  who  wish  not  only  to  see,  but  to  understand,  not  only  to 
admire,  but  to  know  why  they  admire.  There  are  few  who  would  miss  an 
opportunity  to  walk  through  the  grounds  and  courts  under  the  guidance  of 
the  artists  who  planned  and  executed  them,  and  it  is  the  best  possible  sub- 
stitute for  such  an  excursion  that  Mr.  Barry  provides.  .  .  .  Nothing  es- 
capes him  that  is  worthy  of  attention,  and  his  explanations  are  invariably 
what  they  should  be  and  intelligently  addressed  to  intelligent  minds.  The 
introduction  is  devoted  to  an  account  of  the  early  development  of  the  Ex- 
position project — a  most  satisfactory  feature — while  the  numerous  illus- 
trations are  well  selected  and  well  executed. — The  Argonaut. 

There  is  much  enlightened  appreciation  of  the  artistic  features  of  the 
Exposition  in  "The  City  of  Domes,"  by  John  D.  Barry,  whose  literary  man- 
ner is  so  admirably  adapted  to  the  task  of  simple  and  clear  explanation. 
With  the  author  on  his  excursion  goes  an  architect,  who,  whether  real  or 
imaginary,  is  singularly  well  informed.  Together  they  talk  of  the  various 
courts  and  palaces,  the  architecture,  the  sculpture,  the  mural  decorations, 
the  coloring  and  the  lighting.  It  was  a  happy  thought,  that  of  the  dialogue 
form,  for  one  really  seems  to  be  listening  to  two  voices  instead  of  only  one, 
and  to  be  given  two  sets  of  impressions.  Perhaps  it  is  not  too  late  for 
some  Marion  Crawford  to  assemble  the  shades  of  the  great  painters  and 
sculptors  and  have  many  opinions  on  the  masterpieces  of  the  Exposition. 
Meanwhile  the  Barry  book  will  be  found  that  something  ever  so  much 
more  valuable  than  the  best  catalogue,  the  personality  of  one  who  loves 


art  and  longs  to  convey  his  emotions  as  well  as  his  information  to  others. 
.  .  .  An  introduction  furnishes  a  history  of  the  growth  of  the  Exposition, 
and  the  well-printed  pages  with  their  high-grade  paper  are  more  than 
liberally  punctuated  with  beautiful  pictures. — San  Francisco  Chronicle. 

The  beauty  of  Mr.  Barry's  vade  mecum  is  that  it  is  not  mere  "pub- 
licity," nor  a  mere  guide  book,  nor  aimed  primarily  at  the  booming  of  the 
Exposition;  no  drummer  or  barker  would  admit,  as  he  does,  that  there  are 
many  things  to  be  criticised.  His  companions  are  brilliant  talkers  and,  be- 
sides being  trained  artists  and  architects,  these  interlocutors,  like  Mr. 
Barry,  approach  their  subject  always  from  the  social  philosopher's  view- 
point. "Most  columns  of  this  kind,"  he  writes  of  the  Column  of  Progress, 
"  had  celebrated  some  great  figure  or  historic  feat,  usually  related  to  war. 
But  this  column  stood  for  those  sturdy  virtues  that  were  developed,  not 
through  the  hazards  and  the  excitements  and  fevers  of  conquest,  but  through 
the  persistent  and  homely  tests  of  peace,  through  the  cultivation  of  those 
qualities  that  laid  the  foundations  of  civilized  living."  The  significance  of 
the  location,  the  physical  and  topographical  environment  have  their  philos- 
ophy and  suggestion,  according  to  Mr.  Barry  and  his  friends.  "When  I 
mentioned  that  there  ought  to  be  more  boats  out  there  on  the  bay,  a  whole 
fleet,  and  some  of  them  with  colored  sails,  to  give  more  brightness,  the 
architect  shook  his  head:  "The  scene  is  typically  Californian.  It  suggests 
stretches  of  vacant  country  here  in  this  State,  waiting  for  the  people  to  come 
from  the  overcrowded  East  and  Middle  West  and  thrive  on  the  land." 

"All  things  considered,"  says  one  of  Mr.  Barry's  critics,  "the  archi- 
tects did  an  uncommonly  fine  job  in  making  the  courts  run  from  the  Es- 
planade," though  there  have  been  critics  who  said  that  the  entrance  courts 
ought  to  have  been  placed  on  the  other  side — that  is,  that  the  Exposition 
ought  to  have  been  turned  round.  But  this  would  have  been  to  sacrifice 
the  view  of  the  Exposition  from  the  water,  which  is  wonderfully  fine  "in 
bringing  out  the  charm  of  the  straight  lines."  Past  an  inner  court  which 
the  workmen  thereabouts  call  "Pink  Alley,"  its  proper  name  the  Court  of 
Mines,  the  critics  come  to  the  Court  of  Ages  and  here  the  architect  draws 
a  long  breath:  "In  this  court  we  architects  feel  puzzled.  We  think  we  can 
read  new  architectural  forms  like  a  book,  and  find  that  they  are  saying 
things  repeated  down  the  ages.  But  we  can't  read  much  here.  In  that 
lovely  round  arch  there  are  hints  of  the  Gothic,  yet  it  is  not  a  Gothic  arch. 
Throughout  the  treatment  there  are  echoes  of  the  Spanish,  and  yet  the 
treatment  is  not  Spanish.  The  more  one  studies  the  conception  and  work- 
manship the  more  striking  it  grows  in  originality  and  daring.  The  whole 
evolution  of  man  is  intimated  here,  from  the  time  when  he  lived  among 
the  seaweed  and  the  fish;  even  the  straight  vertical  lines  used  in  the  design 
suggest  the  dripping  of  water."  .  .  .  The  design  was  mercilessly  cut  down 
by  the  fiscal  limitations  of  the  management,  but  the  architect-critic  registers 
with  Barry  the  opinion  that  "the  chances  are  that  Mullgardt  will  go  down 
into  history  for  his  daring  here.  ...  It  represented  a  big  opportunity  and 
Mullgardt  was  big  enough  to  get  away  with  it."  So  Mr.  Barry's  little  book 
takes  the  reader  from  court  to  court  through  the  Panama-Pacific,  with  his 
knowing  mentors,  appraising,  rather  than  applauding,  everything,  yet  with 
a  generous  appreciation  and  a  rare  interpretive  insight  for  the  subtler  sig- 
nificance.— "The  Listener"  in  The  Boston  Transcript. 


Mr.  Barry's  three  books  on  the  Pan- 
ama-Pacific International  Exposition: 
"The  City  of  Domes"  ($1.50),  "The 
Palace  of  Fine  Arts  and  the  French 
and  Italian  Pavilions"  (50  cents),  and 
"The  Meaning  of  the  Exposition  (25 
cents),  may  be  secured  without  delivery 
charges  by  writing  to  Dept.  B.,  H.  S. 
Crocker  Co.,  565  Market  Street,  San 
Francisco. 

"The  Meaning  of  the  Exposition"  is 
a  small  paper-covered  volume,  beauti- 
fully printed,  and  with  an  ornamental 
cover-design,  published  in  an  envelope. 
It  is  developed  from  lectures  many 
times  delivered  by  Mr.  Barry  on  the 
Exposition  grounds,  in  Recital  Hall. 


THE  PALACE  OF 
FINE  ARTS 

AND  THE 

FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS 

A  WALK  WITH  A  PAINTER,  WITH  A 

DISCUSSION  OF  PAINTING  AND  SCULPTURE, 

AND  SOME  OF  THE  WORKERS  THEREIN, 

MAINLY  FROM  THE  PAINTER'S 

POINT  OF  VIEW 


By 
JOHN  D.  BARRY 

AUTHOR  OF  "THE  CITY  OF  DOMES"  AND 
"THE  MEANING  OF  THE  EXPOSITION" 

PRICE  FIFTY  CENTS 


SAN  FRANCISCO 

H.  S.  CROCKER  COMPANY 
1915 


COPYRIGHT,   1915,  BY  JOHN  D.  BARRY 


/v 


PRINTED   BY  TAYLOR  &  TAYLOR,   SAN   FRANCISCO 


TO 

THE  ART-WORKERS  OF 

THE  WORLD,  WHO  HAVE  DONE  SO 

MUCH  TO  KEEP  ALIVE  THE 

SPIRIT  OF  BEAUTY 


313057 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Title  Page I 

Table  of  Contents .  V,  VI 

Foreword VII 

Preface IX-XII 

Out-Door  Gallery,  The 1-3 

First  Impressions 4-5 

Sargent 5-8 

Old  Masters,  The        8-10 

Whistler 11-13 

The  Impressionists 14-18 

Frieseke,  Tanner  and  Melchers 18-21 

Swedish  Section,  The 22-29 

French  Section,  The 29-32 

Italian  Section,  The 32-34 

Women  Painters'  Room,  The 35-37 

Japanese  Section,  The 37-42 

Chinese  Section,  In  the 43-45 

French  Pavilion,  The 45-53 

Italian  Futurists,  The 53-58 

Italian  Pavilion,  The 59-61 

Fifteen  Distinguished  American  Artists: 

Chase,  William  M 62 

Duveneck,  Frank 62 

Hamilton,  John  McClure 63 

Hassam,  Childe .  63 

Keith,  William 63 

Mathews,  Arthur 64 

McComas,  Francis 64 

Melchers,  Gari 64 

Pennell,  Joseph 64 

Pyle,  Howard 65 

Redfield,  Edward  W 65 

Sargent,  John  Singer • .  65 

Tarbell,  Edmund  C 65 

Twachtman,  John  H 66 

Whistler,  John  McNeill 66 

Painters  and  Sculptors  Whose  Work  Ought  to  be  Noted   -  67 


FOREWORD 


HESE  TALKS  I 
have  treated  as  it 
they  were  one  talk, 
for  the  sake  of  com- 
pactness.They  rep- 
resent many  visits 
to  the  buildings 
they  discuss,  and, 
though  they  deal 
with  only  a  part  of  the  great  mass  of  art- 
works there,  they  touch  on  many  themes. 
Wherever  I  could,  I  wished  to  keep  for- 
ward the  point  of  view  of  the  painter, 
first,  because  I  do  not  claim  to  speak  with 
authority  on  art,  and  secondly,  because  the 
professional  point  of  view,  coming  from  the 
inside,  seems  to  me  decidedly  more  worth 
while  than  the  layman's.  It  is  for  the  pur- 
pose of  helping  the  layman  to  take  the 
professional  point  of  view  that  this  little 
book  has  been  written  in  this  particular 
way,  with  emphasis  on  painting,  which  is 
less  easily  comprehended  than  sculpture, 
particularly  in  its  modern  phases. 


PREFACE 

DON'T  know  anything  about  art,"  says  a 
friend  with  the  courage  of  his  opinions, 
"but  I  know  what  I  hate." 

His  words  may  give  comfort  to  those 
people  who  go  to  the  Exposition  and  face 
the  Palace  of  Fine  Arts  with  the  feeling 
that  they  ought  in  some  way  to  show  ap- 
preciation. So  many  of  them  feel  bewildered  before  the 
mass  of  paintings.  Where  are  they  to  begin?  What  is  real- 
ly worth  while?  What  is  the  meaning  behind  all  this  mys- 
tery which  so  often  seems  like  mere  eccentricity?  Since 
the  painters  themselves  so  violently  disagree,  denouncing 
as  horrors  and  frights  canvases  that  have  been  awarded 
medals  by  juries  composed  of  painters  of  distinction,  how 
is  anyone  to  know  what  is  really  good  ? 

A  lady  in  a  very  perturbed  state  of  mind  wrote  me  a 
letter  the  other  day,  saying,  among  other  things:  "In  the 
Palace  of  Fine  Arts  I  have  noticed  the  picture  of  a  fat, 
nude  woman  eating  an  apple.  Is  it  supposed  to  be  fine? 
Ought  we  to  admire  it?"  The  questions  were  not  altogether 
easy  to  answer.  Perhaps  there  isn't  any  "ought"  in  the 
matter.  When  art  becomes  a  matter  of  duty  it  ceases  to 
fulfill  its  function.  The  proverb  about  taste  applies  to  paint- 
ing as  well  as  to  other  kinds  of  endeavor.  So  far  as  that 
particular  picture  is  concerned  I  can  conceive  of  two  di- 
rectly opposite  points  of  view,  equally  intelligent.  Some 
people  find  gratuitous  nudity  in  art  offensive.  Other  people 
find  it  beautiful,  as  a  rule  artists  and  those  who  pride  them- 
selves on  being  emancipated  from  prejudice.  There  are 
still  others  who  take  a  middle  course  and  find  both  ex- 
tremes tiresome.  In  itself  the  portrait  of  a  nude  fleshy 


x  PREFACE 

woman  eating  an  apple  does  not  seem  to  be  especially  in- 
spiring. And  its  right  place  may  not  be  in  an  international 
exhibition.  What  its  right  place  is  might  be  hard  to  say — 
possibly  one  of  those  luxurious  bar-rooms  that  do  so  much 
to  cultivate  taste. 

On  the  other  hand,  I  can  conceive  of  a  painter  taking  a 
great  deal  of  pleasure  in  making  a  technical  study  of  a 
painting  where  a  nude  woman  is  eating  an  apple,  admiring 
the  skill  of  the  flesh  tints,  the  outline  of  the  figure,  even 
the  color  of  the  apple,  noting  how  the  color  of  the  apple 
harmonizes  with  the  deep  green  of  the  background.  One 
of  the  most  appealing  qualities  among  painters  is  their 
faculty  forgetting  pleasure  out  of  little  things.  In  this  re- 
gard they  are  like  children.  It  must  be  this  quality  in  them 
that  gives  meaning  to  that  saying,  "Art  recovers  the  inno- 
cence of  the  eye." 

Only  the  other  day,  when  I  was  walking  through  the 
Palace  of  Fine  Arts  with  a  painter,  I  mentioned  that  a  cer- 
tain picture  impressed  me  as  being  a  childish  conception, 
and  he  rebuked  me  by  saying :  "You  are  paying  the  painter 
a  compliment.  The  instinct  of  children  in  matters  of  art  is 
usually  sound.  They  paint  what  they  see.  They  haven't 
learned  to  blur  their  vision  with  preconceived  ideas." 

Much,  then,  it  is  plain,  depends  on  the  attitude  of  mind 
that  we  take  on  entering  a  picture  gallery.  "Abandon  preju- 
dice, all  ye  who  enter  here"  might  be  written  over  the 
door.  Even  in  this  vexatious  matter  of  nudity  there  should 
be  allowance.  At  the  same  time  it  should  be  borne  in  mind 
that  painters,  like  other  specialists,  are  almost  certain  to  be 
influenced  by  professionalism.  In  their  attitude  toward 
nudity  they  take  a  very  superior  air.  They  think  the  public 
must  be  educated  up  to  their  views.  Some  of  them  make  no 
concessions  at  all  to  what  the  world  at  large  regards  as 
delicacy  or  modesty.  With  approval  they  cite  the  frank- 


PREFACE  xi 

ness  of  the  Greeks  in  this  matter,  forgetting  that  it  was  the 
expression  of  a  civilization  very  different  from  our  own. 

Of  one  consideration  we  may  be  sure,  whether  we  are 
trained  to  an  understanding  of  art  or  untrained :  No  matter 
what  subject  the  artist  may  treat,  no  matter  what  style  he 
may  paint  in,  he  will  express  himself.  Painting  is  like  any 
other  form  of  expression.  It  is  a  kind  of  speech.  The  instant 
a  painter  gives  a  picture  to  the  public  he  reveals  his  own 
qualities.  It  is  to  discern  the  mind  and  the  character  be- 
hind the  work  that  ought  to  be  the  prime  object  of  the  ob- 
server. Sometimes  it  is  not  easy  to  find  the  key,  and  till  it 
is  found  the  meaning  of  a  picture  must  remain  hidden. 
Here,  perhaps,  lies  an  explanation  of  much  of  art's  mys- 
tery. We  look  at  art  from  our  own  point  of  view  instead 
of  looking  at  it  from  the  artist's  point  of  view.  Instead  of 
saying,  "Why  did  he  do  this  thing  in  this  particular  way?" 
we  say,  "Why  didn't  he  do  some  other  thing  in  some  other 
way,"  which  amounts  to  saying,  "When  he  was  trying  to 
express  himself,  why  didn't  he  express  me?" 

There  is  another  consideration  to  be  kept  in  mind. 
Painters  often  speak  as  if  current  art  were  a  fixed  thing,  as 
if  it  were  scientific.  By  art  they  usually  mean  the  way  they 
like  and  practice.  But  art  is  largely  a  matter  of  fashion. 
Someone  starts  a  new  fashion.  Its  imitators  make  a  school. 
They  have  the  truth,  the  only  truth.  But  it  is  merely  the 
latest  truth.  Tomorrow  it  may  be  derided.  The  instant  art 
becomes  old-fashioned  it  is  likely  to  be  funny.  Meanwhile, 
however,  the  old  masters  remain,  out  of  the  reach  of  time. 

A  good  way  to  realize  the  relativity  of  art  is  to  begin  a 
survey  of  the  pictures  in  the  Fine  Arts  Palace  by  looking 
at  Thomas  Hovenden's  "Breaking  Home  Ties."  At  the 
Chicago  Exposition,  nearly  twenty-five  years  ago,  it  made 
a  sensation.  In  reproductions  it  went  all  over  the  country. 
Now  it  is  almost  unnoticed.  The  vogue  of  the  sentimental, 


xii  PREFACE 

story-telling  picture  has  passed.  And  yet  the  picture  re- 
mains the  same.  And  the  appeal  that  caused  it  to  reach  a 
multitude  of  hearts  is  still  there  and  would  operate  again 
if  people  were  told  they  ought  to  feel  it.  Among  the  un- 
sophisticated observers,  unaware  of  what  the  present  fash- 
ion in  art  happens  to  be,  it  still  operates.  It  is  a  beautiful 
thing,  finely  painted,  telling  a  story,  as  a  skillful  writer 
would  do,  by  means  of  carefully-presented  characteriza- 
tions. 

When  we  keep  the  relativity  of  art  in  mind  we  can  see 
why  an  interest  in  one  style  ought  not  to  create  a  preju- 
dice, as  it  so  often  does,  against  other  styles.  A  lover  of  im- 
pressionism ought  to  be  able  to  enjoy  the  dark  tones  that 
give  richness  and  depth  to  the  work  of  the  old  masters  and 
their  followers,  qualities,  for  example,  conspicuous  in  the 
canvases  here  by  Duveneck,  of  the  Munich  school,  and 
Keith,  of  the  Barbizon  school,  devoted  to  the  romantic 
treatment  of  landscape.  There  is  no  real  antagonism  be- 
tween the  academic  and  the  open-air  painters.  They  mere- 
ly see  and  express  themselves  in  different  ways.  Unfortu- 
nately, enthusiasm  for  a  certain  kind  of  art,  like  many 
other  kinds  of  enthusiasm,  develops  limitation. 


THE  OUT-DOOR  GALLERY 

i 


ERE  is  a  feature  of  the  Exposition  that  the  di- 
rector of  the  Fine  Arts  Department,  Trask, 
deserves  a  great  deal  of  credit  for,"  said  the 
painter  as  we  strolled  in  the  direction  of  the 
southern  end  of  Maybeck's  magnificent  colon- 
nade, with  a  view  to  examining  the  out-door 
gallery.  "At  first  some  of  the  artists  were  in- 
clined to  take  a  critical  attitude  toward  it; 
but  they  must  all  have  been  impressed  by  the 
great  success  it  has  made  with  visitors.  It  includes  some  very  in- 
teresting pieces  by  some  of  the  best  American  sculptors.  There 
are  three  big  men,  close  together,  for  example,  Frederick  G.  R. 
Roth,  Cyrus  Dallin  and  G.  B.  Proctor.  Roth's  sea-lions  have  a 
curious  interest;  Dallin's  'Scout*  is  worthy  of  all  the  praise  it  has 
had  for  its  quiet  strength  and  sincerity,  and  Proctor's  American 
bisons  are  finely  done." 

In  the  colonnade  the  painter  expressed  enthusiasm  for  what 
Maybeck  had  done  here.  "How  cleverly  he  has  suggested  over- 
growth, with  a  kind  of  tropical  luxuriance.  This  colonnade  alone 
would  make  his  work  remarkable  even  if  the  other  features  didn't 
have  their  own  originality.  So  far  as  I  know,  Maybeck  has  done 
something  never  thought  of  before  in  the  history  of  art.  He  has 
deliberately  created  a  classic  ruin  and  invested  it  with  poetry.  In 
this  colonnade  he  has  given  sculpture  the  most  picturesque  back- 
ground it  could  possibly  have  had.  In  no  other  Exposition  has 
anything  like  it  been  attempted." 

In  the  "Muse  Finding  the  Head  of  Orpheus,"  we  thought  we 
could  see  why  Edward  Berge  had  made  so  successful  an  appeal  to 
the  public.  In  the  first  place  the  design  had  a  remarkable  delicacy 
and  beauty.  Then,  too,  it  was  original  and  dramatic.  The  work 
sent  us  to  those  two  other  figures  by  Berge  near  by,  "Boy  and 
Frog"  and  "  Wild  Flower,"  both  delightful  in  sentiment  and  clever 
in  treatment.  In  "Wild  Flower"  the  figure  of  the  little  girl  leaning 
forward  with  the  hands  in  a  pretty  gesture  at  either  side  was 


2  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

wonderfully  appealing.  "After  this  Exposition,"  the  painter  said, 
"there  is  likely  to  be  a  large  number  of  figures  of  children  put  on 
the  market.  All  the  children  in  this  out-door  gallery  have  been 
liked,  those  by  Janet  Scudder  and  Edith  Baretto  Parsons  being 
special  favorites.  The  Parsons  'Duck  Baby'  has  as  many  admirers 
as  the  Berge  'Wild  Flower/  though  it  isn't  so  well  modeled.  Paint- 
ers and  sculptors  may  talk  as  much  as  they  like  about  the  minor 
importance  of  a  subject.  But  there  are  some  subjects  that  are 
bound  to  stay  popular  with  the  people  in  general  and  one  of  them 
is  babies.  If  I  were  a  sculptor  and  wanted  to  make  my  eternal 
fortune  I  should  devote  myself  to  babies  exclusively." 

We  stopped  before  Robert  Aitken's  small  group  representing 
Michael  Angelo  at  work  on  his  massive  figure  of  "Day"  for  the 
Medici  chapel  in  the  church  of  San  Lorenzo,  Florence.  "It's  a 
little  too  small  for  its  theme  and  for  these  splendid  surroundings," 
the  painter  remarked.  "This  criticism  applies  to  several  of  the 
pieces  set  out  here.  They  are  somewhat  out  of  scale.  Nevertheless, 
the  effect,  on  the  whole,  is  good,  and  it  is  to  the  credit  of  the  visit- 
ors that  they  have  been  appreciative.  However,  most  of  them  pass 
over  this  very  typical  work  of  Aitken's,  possibly  because  it  is  a 
little  off  the  path.  It's  decidedly  worth  noting,  both  because  it  is 
so  vigorously  handled,  with  strongly  characterized  surfaces,  and 
because  it  so  frankly  expresses  Aitken's  admiration  for  the  master 
whose  spirit  he  has  echoed  so  interestingly  in  those  four  figures 
that  adorn  the  Court  of  the  Universe  and  in  that  elaborate  and 
powerful,  but  over-symbolized,  Fountain  of  the  Earth  in  the  Court 
of  the  Ages.  San  Francisco  has  good  reason  to  be  proud  of  the 
sculptors  she  has  given  to  the  world,  such  men  as  Stackpole, 
Walter,  Putnam,  Patigian  and  Aitken.  Each  has  his  own  individu- 
ality and  among  them  Aitken  is  distinguished  for  his  daring. 

"The  Outcast,"  by  Atillio  Piccirilli,  was  another  of  the  popular 
successes.  In  studying  it  the  painter  thought  he  could  understand 
why.  "It  strikes  you  right  in  the  face  by  the  very  strength  of  the 
despair  expressed  in  the  attitude  of  the  nude  figure.  It  was  a  good 
idea,  by  the  way,  to  make  the  figure  nude  and  to  give  it  so  much 
vitality,  which  somehow  adds  to  the  poignancy  of  the  feeling.  It 
illustrates  the  use  of  light  and  shade  in  the  modeling,  which  is 
just  as  important  in  a  work  of  sculpture  as  in  a  painting,  though 
not  so  plain  to  the  unpracticed  eye,  which  is  likely  to  prefer  the 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  3 

smooth  surfaces,  as  characterless  as  a  photograph  with  all  the 
lines  touched  out.  I  don't  suppose  it  would  be  here,"  the  painter 
continued  as  we  started  to  pass  on,  "if  Rodin  hadn't  done  his 
Thinker.'  To  my  mind  it's  just  as  impressive  and  is  far  more  con- 
sistent in  its  psychology." 

In  the  rotunda  we  found  the  most  ambitious  of  all  the  out- 
door pieces,  Paul  Wayland  Bartlett's  equestrian  statute  of  La- 
fayette. "Only  a  man  with  a  fine  pictorial  sense  could  have  done 
this  work,"  the  painter  exclaimed.  "It  was  an  inspiration  on  the 
part  of  Trask  to  have  it  placed  here.  It  can  stand  the  majesty  of 
the  surroundings.  Many  people  consider  Bartlett  our  biggest 
sculptor.  It  was  certainly  a  great  compliment  that  he  should 
have  been  chosen  to  make  this  work  for  Paris.  That  post  under  the 
figure  of  the  horse  had  to  be  used  to  hold  up  the  plaster  copy. 
Otherwise  the  group  would  have  blown  down.  In  bronze,  of 
course,  the  effect  is  much  more  impressive.  But  here  you  can  see 
how  finely  the  horse  and  the  rider  have  been  developed  and  with 
what  heroic  spirit." 

The  Daniel  Chester  French  Student  Memorial  Statue  struck  us 
both  as  being  a  spirited  presentation  of  a  familiar  type  of  college 
youth,  but  as  somewhat  overladen  with  symbolism.  Why  should 
so  many  incongruous  symbols  go  together,  the  sweater,  the  books, 
the  college  gown?  Symbolism  was  at  its  best  when  it  did  not  hit 
you  in  the  face,  when  it  stole  quietly  into  the  consciousness. 

As  we  passed  Grafly's  "Pioneer  Mother"  a  group  of  women 
were  discussing  it  with  animation.  "This  group  has  probably  done 
more  than  anything  else  on  the  grounds  to  stir  up  artisti?  feeling, 
particularly  among  Californians.  They  think  that  they  own  it. 
They  have  the  sense  of  relationship  which  is  so  important  in  art. 
After  all,  if  we  don't  feel  related  to  what  we  look  at,  we  are  all  at 
sea.  We  can't  form  intelligent  opinions.  Grafly  ought  to  get  a 
gold  medal,  not  because  he's  done  a  fine  piece  of  work  here,  for 
he  hasn't,  but  because  he  has  done  something  that  has  made  peo- 
ple think  about  artistic  fitness." 


FIRST  IMPRESSIONS 
ii 

S  WE  entered  the  rotunda  the  painter  remarked : 
"Many  people  pass  through  here  without  stop- 
ping to  realize  that  it  is  packed  with  good 
things.  This  fountain  by  Gertrude  Vanderbilt 
Whitney,  in  the  center,  is  charming.  I  like  it 
even  better  than  the  'El  Dorado,'  which  has 
brought  her  so  much  praise,  the  fountain  under 
the  Tower  of  Jewels.  Interesting  as  'El  Dorado' 
w  i"*"—"""""  — ^«  **  jS)  ft  somehow  gives  me  the  sense  of  strain. 
The  sculpture  here  includes  the  work  of  Carl  Bitter,  James  L. 
Fraser,  Attilio  Piccirilli,  Sterling  Calder,  Bela  L.  Pratt,  Frederick 
G.  R.  Roth,  Robert  Aitken  and  Herbert  Adams.  These  four  panels 
by  Henry  Hering,  from  Yale  University,  are  very  interesting. 
Then  there  is  the  Alice  Freeman  memorial,  from  Wellesley  Col- 
lege Chapel,  by  Daniel  Chester  French.  The  original  is  in  white 
marble.  A  few  years  ago  Mrs.  Palmer  was  a  great  figure  in  Ameri- 
can education.  She  is  still  revered  by  those  who  knew  her  person- 
ally or  by  report.  The  paintings  for  this  spot  have  been  very  well 
chosen.  There  are  those  who  think  the  big  canvas  that  strikes 
your  eye  as  soon  as  you  come  in  here,  'The  Joy  of  Life,'  by  Alex- 
ander Harrison,  is  not  one  of  the  best  of  Harrison's  canvases; 
but  it  seems  to  me  very  characteristic  and  very  finely  done.  And 
the  'Field  of  Poppies,'  by  Robert  Vonnoh,  makes  a  beautiful  spot 
of  color  on  the  wall.  Every  time  I  come  here  it  attracts  my  eye." 

We  turned  to  the  right  and  found  ourselves  in  gallery  eighty. 
"I  like  to  call  this  the  'Boston  and  New  England  Room',"  said 
the  painter.  "Look  at  these  canvases  and  see  if  they  aren't  New 
England  all  over.  The  seven  paintings  by  Williard  L.  Metcalf  are 
among  the  gems  of  the  exhibit.  After  looking  at  them,  are  you  sur- 
prised that  Metcalf  is  given  a  medal  of  honor?  'Trembling  Leaves' 
is  to  me  as  fine  a  piece  of  work  as  you  can  find  among  all  the  men 
of  today  that  are  represented  here.  It  is  an  ideal  picture  to  have 
in  the  house.  It  vibrates  with  light  and  color.  It  gives  you  the 
sense  of  being  out  of  doors.  It  could  have  been  done  only  by  a 
man  who  had  a  deep  love  of  nature  in  his  heart,  and  who  also  had 
very  remarkable  skill.  It  doesn't  belong  permanently  in  a  gallery. 
It's  too  intimate.  Nothing  just  like  it  has  ever  been  done  before. 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  5 

The  whole  canvas  flickers.  But  for  Monet  it  could  not  have  been 
done." 

The  next  room  that  held  us  was  gallery  seventy-six,  where  we 
found  twelve  paintings  by  Arthur  F.  Mathews  and  ten  paintings 
by  Francis  McComas.  "Here  we  are  in  California  and  Arizona. 
Mathews  is  the  dean  of  California  painters.  See  how  individual 
and  original  he  is  in  his  design  and  coloring.  Everything  he  does 
is  decorative  and  full  of  refinement.  It's  reported  that  he  would 
have  been  given  the  great  prize  if  he  hadn't  been  a  member  of  the 
jury.  He  always  knows  just  what  he  wants  to  do,  and  he  does  it 
skilfully  and  finely.  The  work  of  McComas  is  always  character- 
istic, too.  He  is  a  master  of  atmospheric  and  rich  color  effects. 
How  interesting  and  poetic  he  makes  those  trees  of  his.  In  his 
Arizona  studies  he  has  a  chance  to  demonstrate  his  talent  for 
dealing  with  light.  Of  all  our  painters  he  is  one  of  the  most 
poetic." 


SARGENT 
in 

IKE  most  visitors  to  the  gallery,  we  were  eager 
to  reach  the  Sargent  room.  To  enter  it  we 
passed  through  the  room  devoted  to  the  work 
of  Gari  Melchers,  the  painter  of  Dutch  types 
and  Dutch  scenes,  all  full  of  vitality,  close  to 
the  earth.  With  those  canvases  in  our  minds  it 
was  somewhat  disturbing  to  face  the  Sargents, 
sophisticated,  refined  and  subtle,  made  by  the 
contrast  to  seem  a  little  attenuated.  "There's 
one  of  the  disadvantages  of  an  exhibition,"  said  the  painter.  "It 
brings  together  canvases  that  ought  to  be  miles  apart,  that  have 
no  relation  to  one  another." 

At  once  we  were  drawn  to  the  famous  portrait  of  Madame 
Gautreau,  the  antithesis  of  those  Dutch  peasants  of  Melchers',  a 
distinct  type,  the  slim  and  graceful  and  highly  cultivated  modern 
Frenchwoman,  standing  beside  a  table  in  evening  dress,  bare  neck 
and  arms,  her  right  hand  holding  the  table's  edge,  the  right  arm 
marvelously  well  painted.  "Sargent  often  paints  those  exotic,  ner- 


6  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

vous  women,  and  here  he  has  a  subject  that  he  is  particularly  suc- 
cessful with.  The  simplicity  and  the  finensss  of  the  arrangement 
is  one  of  the  portrait's  greatest  charms.  And  how  delicately  he  has 
brought  out  that  profile.  And  see  how  he  has  suggested  the  make- 
up on  the  face,  the  sickly  pallor  that  so  many  women  of  fashion 
nowadays  like  to  cultivate.  The  arms  and  the  hands  are  master- 
pieces of  painting  and  the  whole  characterization  is  brilliantly 
achieved.  Velasquez  would  have  applauded  that  portrait.  Sargent 
has  been  greatly  influenced  by  Velasquez.  He's  always  running 
down  to  Spain  to  refresh  himself  with  new  impressions  of  the 
master." 

On  the  opposite  wall  we  found  the  portrait  of  Henry  James, 
the  novelist,  that  leaped  into  world-wide  celebrity  a  couple  of 
years  ago  when  it  was  slashed  in  London  at  the  annual  Academy 
exhibition  by  a  militant  suffragette.  "Observe  the  difference  be- 
tween the  work  done  on  the  Madame  Gautreau  canvas  and  the 
work  here.  In  one  there's  a  hard  brilliancy.  But  when  Sargent 
painted  James  he  was  painting  a  life-long  friend  and  he  put  heart 
into  his  work.  The  pose  of  the  figure  and  the  treatment  of  the 
face  are  admirable.  The  tired  eyes  are  shrewd  and  yet  sympa- 
thetic. The  mouth  is  wonderfully  indicated,  kindly,  but  yet  strong. 
By  the  way,  they've  repaired  the  damage  very  skilfully.  There's 
only  a  faint  line  over  the  left  side  of  the  mouth  that  can  be  seen, 
and  it  might  be  taken  for  a  brush  stroke." 

At  that  moment  a  gentleman  who  stood  beside  us  spoke  up. 
"I  happened  to  be  in  the  Academy  when  the  picture  was  slashed," 
he  said.  "A  few  minutes  before  I  noticed  a  woman  wandering 
about  with  a  basket  in  her  hand.  She  didn't  look  like  a  person  in- 
terested in  art  and  I  wondered  what  she  could  be  doing  there. 
She  made  quick  work  of  the  picture  and  the  next  minute  they  had 
it  off  the  walls." 

Then  we  were  told  that  Sargent  had  given  up  portrait  paint- 
ing. "Why  should  I  go  on  making  unimportant  people  famous?" 
he  said  one  day.  He  didn't  need  the  money  any  more.  He  had  be- 
come rich  from  his  work.  For  a  sketch  that  he  could  finish  in  a 
half  hour  or  perhaps  ten  minutes,  he  often  received  as  much  as 
two  or  three  thousand  dollars. 

When  the  stranger  had  taken  himself  off  the  painter  at  my 
side  remarked:  "There's  a  camaraderie  about  an  interest  in  art 
that  breaks  down  our  usual  reserves.  I  often  have  interesting  en- 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  7 

counters  with  people  like  that  gentleman  here.  And  the  desire  of 
the  uninformed  people  who  are  trying  to  get  a  line  on  the  pic- 
tures is  almost  pathetic.  They  often  gather  around  anyone  that 
talks  about  the  pictures." 

Just  then  one  of  the  women  guides  entered  the  room  with  a 
group  of  visitors.  Perhaps  we  ought  not  to  have  listened,  but  we 
were  human.  "Now  here's  a  man  that  knows  about  people,"  she 
said.  "He  tells  us  all  about  the  race  and  the  social  position  and 
the  characters  of  his  subjects.  But  he  doesn't  know  anything  about 
air  or  sunshine.  Lately  he's  taken  to  painting  landscape.  He'd  do 
much  better  to  stick  to  his  portraits." 

With  this  summing  up,  the  guide  gracefully  swept  from  the 
room.  "She  didn't  do  a  thing  to  Sargent,  did  she?"  said  the  paint- 
er. "But  she's  right  in  saying  that  Sargent  doesn't  pay  much  atten- 
tion to  atmospheric  effects.  His  landscapes,  nevertheless,  are  very 
interesting  and  characteristic.  And  his  backgrounds  are  masterly. 
See  how  perfectly  that  nude  study  of  a  girl  is  done  over  there,  and 
how  distinct  it  is  from  the  background." 

It  was  the  portrait  work  that  held  our  attention.  Best  of  all, 
I  liked  the  Joe  Jefferson,  the  actor  to  the  life,  with  youth  shining 
through  the  age  in  the  face,  exactly  as  it  had  done  in  life  to  the 
latest  year.  One  could  almost  hear  Rip's  voice  speaking  out  of  the 
canvas. 

The  "Spanish  Gypsy"  and  the  "Spanish  Courtyard,"  though 
they  might  not  have  been  "atmospheric,"  were,  nevertheless,  as 
the  painter  said,  "Spain  all  over."  The  Gypsy  had  the  lazy  grace, 
the  dramatic  pose  and  the  coloring  that  suggested  Calve  in  "Car- 
men." "Sargent  catches  quick  and  characteristic  expressions," 
said  the  painter.  "He's  intuitive  and  he's  daring.  Though  he  often 
faintly  suggests  other  painters,  he  is  always  himself — an  extraor- 
dinary talent." 

"What  can  be  the  secret  of  this  painter's  gift?"  I  kept  asking 
myself.  I  thought  I  found  it  in  studying  the  faces  of  those  por- 
traits, each  distinctive,  and  yet  all  show  the  same  technical  meth- 
od, marvelously  expert.  Sargent  felt  each  subject  in  a  curiously 
subtle  way,  and  he  succeeded  in  bringing  out  the  individual  quali- 
ties. He  was  like  a  novelist  with  a  genius  for  conveying  impres- 
sions of  character  by  a  touch  here  and  there.  He  knew  how  to 
seize  and  to  emphasize  what  was  salient.  The  rapidity  of  work  he 
was  so  famous  for  suggested  that  he  relied  mainly  on  swift  intu- 
itions and  on  catching  them  while  they  were  vivid  in  his  mind. 


8 


THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 


When  I  expressed  these  opinions,  the  painter  remarked:  "But 
why  try  to  analyze  genius?  Sargent  is  unique.  We've  never  had 
anyone  like  him,  and  we  may  never  have  another.  Why  not  be 
satisfied  with  enjoying  what  he's  done?" 


THE  OLD  MASTERS 

IV 


S  THE  painter  led  the  way  into  gallery  63  he 
looked  around  with  satisfaction.  "Here  is  a 
room  filled  with  treasure,"  he  remarked.  "Think 
of  the  names  that  are  represented.  They  include 
Hogarth,  Gainsborough,  Valesquez,  Guido  Reni, 
Ribera,  Tiepolo,  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds,  Sir  Peter 
Lely,  Sir  Thomas  Lawrence  and  George  Rom- 
ney.  The  Lawrence  is  an  admirable  example. 
About  that  Velasquez  I  have  my  doubts,  al- 
though it  was  lent  by  Frank  Duveneck.  But  about  the  Raeburn 
portrait  of  John  Wauchope  there  can't  be  any  possible  doubt. 
Only  a  master  could  have  painted  that  face  in  just  that  particular 
way." 

We  walked  forward  to  get  a  closer  view.  "If  I  were  to  pick  out 
a  single  canvas  that  seemed  to  me  the  most  valuable  in  the  whole 
exhibit,"  the  painter  went  on,  "I  should  choose  this  one.  It  isn't 
merely  a  portrait.  It's  a  human  being.  The  human  quality  looks 
out  of  the  eyes.  There,  after  all,  is  the  great  test  in  a  portrait. 
Raeburn  was  mainly  self-taught.  He  lived  in  Edinboro'  at  a  time 
when  there  was  very  little  art  feeling  there.  Nevertheless  he  de- 
veloped a  marvelous  dexterity,  the  kind  that  seems  to  be  uncon- 
scious of  itself,  that  works  with  freedom.  Compare  this  portrait 
with  Sargent's  magnificent  study  of  Henry  James  and  you  will  see 
that  Sargent  appears  at  a  disadvantage  for  the  reason  that  he  be- 
trays effort.  There  is  no  effort  here,  and  yet  there  is  supreme  art. 
The  edges  of  the  portrait  are  particularly  well  done,  and,  as  all 
painters  know,  edges  are  hard  to  do.  They  are  a  good  deal  like 
style  in  writing.  If  a  painter  can  manage  the  edges  well  the  rest 
of  his  work  is  likely  to  take  care  of  itself.  A  good  edge  is  what  we 
call  'Lost  and  found.'  Now  you  have  it  and  now  you  don't.  It's 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  9 

easy  to  make  a  knife  edge,  but  it's  quite  another  matter  to  make 
an  edge  that's  firm  without  being  sharp  and  that  models  over. 
Raeburn  excels  in  this  kind  of  edge.  He  does  what  no  photograph, 
for  example,  can  ever  do.  The  photograph  has  a  terrible  impar- 
tiality. It  places  equal  emphasis  on  everything.  The  artist,  on  the 
other  hand,  brings  out  salient  features  of  character,  the  qualities 
that  he  sees  and  feels.  Some  of  our  modern  men  have  this  faculty 
to  a  high  degree,  among  them  Duveneck,  who  belonged  to  the 
Munich  school  that  was  so  deeply  influenced  by  the  old  masters." 

From  Raeburn  we  turned  to  the  Gainsborough  landscape.  "It's 
curious,"  said  the  painter,  "that  this  innocent  looking  canvas 
should  stand  for  a  revolution  in  art.  But  the  fact  remains  that  it 
does  represent  a  new  and  important  movement.  It  is  one  of  the 
first  landscapes  painted  for  its  own  sake.  Wise  as  these  old  fel- 
lows were,  keen  in  their  understanding  of  character,  and  highly  de- 
veloped technically,  they  had  little  use  for  nature.  They  considered 
it  valuable  mainly  as  it  served  for  a  background,  with  human  be- 
ings in  the  foreground,  the  interest  being  centered  in  the  human 
beings.  It  was  by  concentrating  on  portrait  work  that  they  made 
themselves  masters.  What  we  have  lost  in  portraits,  however,  we 
have  gained  in  nature.  From  the  point  of  view  of  today,  this  can- 
vas is  hardly  a  landscape.  For  example,  it  has  no  atmosphere 
whatever.  Nevertheless,  it  is  beautiful,  as  fine  as  a  tapestry,  low  in 
key  and  rich  in  color.  Think  how  we  have  advanced  since  Gains- 
borough's time  in  the  landscape  work  of  such  men  as  Troyon  and 
Corot  and  Whistler,  all  of  whom,  in  different  ways,  gave  poetic 
interpretations  of  nature." 

The  splendid  canvas  of  Tiepolo  was  looking  down  on  us  from 
the  center  of  one  of  the  walls — "Madonna  and  Child,  with  Saint 
Domenico  and  Another  Saint."  It  moved  the  painter  to  enthusi- 
asm. "There's  a  great  man  if  there  ever  was  one.  He  had  the  Vene- 
tian love  of  flamboyant  effects,  draperies  and  other  luxurious  de- 
tails. Think  of  his  making  that  elaborately  ornamented  altar  piece 
a  subordinate  feature  of  his  scheme.  If  a  painter  of  today  were  to 
use  it  at  all  he  would  make  it  the  chief  feature  of  his  picture.  The 
older  men  were  able  to  paint  the  most  intimate  details  and  to  keep 
them  in  their  place.  Tiepolo  is  remarkable  in  his  treatment  of  his 
black  tones.  As  all  painters  know,  it  is  very  hard  to  paint  black 
indoors,  just  as  it's  hard  to  paint  green  outdoors.  And  then  the 
composition,  how  skilfully  handled  it  is,  and  how  pictorial  it  is. 


10  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Tiepolo  was  a  marvel  and  it  is  good  to  see  him  so  well  displayed 
here,  where  people  can  be  reminded  of  his  merit." 

What  delighted  the  painter  most  of  all  among  the  great  mas- 
ters was  the  painting  of  the  heads.  He  had  much  to  say  on  the 
subject  of  eyes  as  the  windows  of  character.  We  were  both  im- 
pressed by  the  single  example  of  Hogarth's  work  in  the  portrait 
of  "Anne,  Viscountess  Irwin."  "In  some  ways  our  own  Robert 
Henri  resembles  Hogarth.  One  can  trace  the  resemblance  in  those 
two  fine  portraits  that  he  has  here,  together  with  several  others, 
'Himself  and  'Herself/  with  all  Ireland  looking  out  of  the  faces." 
Sir  Joshua  Reynolds'  "Lady  Ballington"  disappointed  him  some- 
what in  the  treatment  of  the  face,  though  he  found  the  painting  of 
the  figure  extraordinarily  skillful.  "Faces  are  hard  to  paint,  so 
hard  that  painters  often  go  over  them  again  and  again.  They  know 
that  the  work  as  a  whole  is  going  to  be  judged  by  the  effect  of 
the  face  on  the  spectators.  And  there  is  an  immense  difference 
between  the  spectator's  point  of  view  and  the  painter's.  The  paint- 
er, if  he  knows  his  business,  is  always  looking  for  the  deeper  and 
subtler  expressions  that  lie  beneath  the  surface.  The  spectator  is 
likely  to  look  for  the  superficial  points,  the  insignificant  details." 

In  summing  up  the  old  masters,  the  painter  reminded  me  of 
those  fundamental  principles  of  art  that  were  out  of  the  range  of 
mere  fashion.  No  matter  what  the  fashion  of  a  period  might  be, 
the  work  of  these  men  would  always  be  accepted  as  masterpieces. 
They  knew  how  to  make  their  figures  live.  They  understood  pro- 
portion. They  could  make  their  canvas  interesting  for  the  power 
that  was  expressed  there.  It  was  not  the  great  that  made  the  tran- 
sient schools;  it  was  the  near-great.  Wonderful  as  many  of  the 
later  men  had  been,  they  were  not  able  to  touch  the  old  fellows. 
Raeburn,  Reynolds,  Tiepolo,  Lely  and  the  others  were  unconscious 
psychologists.  Instinctively  they  dealt  with  the  essentials.  They 
escaped  the  blunder  of  using  detail  for  the  sake  of  detail,  as  so 
many  of  the  modern  men  did,  making  it  lifeless  and  unimaginative. 
In  their  work  they  developed  a  serenity  that  was  in  itself  an  ex- 
pression of  mastery." 


WHISTLER 


{ f  |!^  ___,"^"*!*SSEFQ^^  we  tackle  the  out-and-out  impression- 
ists," said  the  painter,  "let's  have  a  look  at  the 
Whistler  room.  And  before  we  go  there,  let's 
see  the  portrait  of  Whistler  by  Chase." 

So  we  started  for  the  room  where  the  Amer- 
ican painter,  William  Merritt  Chase,  was  rep- 
resented   by    many    canvases,    including    the 
"Woman  with  the  White  Shawl,"  one  of  the 
most  exhibited  portraits  in  the  whole  world. 
On  the  wall  we  found  a  fantastic-looking  gentleman  in  middle  life 
standing  against  a  background  of  pure  gold,  with  a  face  and  bear- 
ing suggesting  both  eccentricity  and  humor,  in  one  hand  airily 
carrying  a  long  walking  stick. 

"I'm  not  quite  sure  that  Chase  quite  understood  Whistler,"  the 
painter  remarked.  "But  he  has  given  us  Whistler  as  Whistler 
liked  to  show  himself  before  the  world,  the  Whistler  that  the 
Pennells  put  into  their  'Life.'  I  don't  know  that  Joseph  Pennell 
understood  Whistler  altogether,  either.  But  he  and  his  wife  tried 
very  hard  to  be  fair  in  their  work,  and  they  bring  us  pretty  close 
to  the  man  as  he  appeared  from  day  to  day,  certainly  a  most  in- 
teresting and  contradictory  character,  an  American  Europeanized 
by  his  long  career  abroad,  and  yet  American  to  the  end.  For  those 
who  want  to  get  near  Whistler  it  would  be  a  good  plan  to  read 
that  book.  It  would  make  them  see  what  a  difficult  business  art 
was  and  how  much  a  serious  man  like  Whistler  put  into  his  work. 
Incidentally,  it  would  give  them  an  amusing  picture  of  the  artistic 
temperament  expressing  itself  through  a  very  sensitive  and  way- 
ward and  self-conscious  nature,  by  no  means  free  from  malice." 

"Did  Whistler  like  that  portrait?"  I  asked. 

"Not  in  the  least.  At  about  the  time  it  was  painted,  he  did  a 
portrait  of  Chase.  They  say  he  said  to  Chase,  'I  painted  you  as  a 
gentleman,  and  you  painted  me  as  a  mountebank.'  They  also  say 
he  destroyed  the  portrait  by  Chase  and  never  spoke  to  Chase 
again. 

We  went  straight  into  the  Whistler  room.  "In  some  ways  it's 
a  good  thing  that  the  collection  here  is  so  small.  It  enables  people 


12  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

to  take  it  all  in  and  to  get  a  pretty  fair  idea  of  what  Whistler  was 
trying  to  do.  See  that  row  of  canvases  looking  like  Japanese 
work?  I  call  them  Japanese  because  most  people  describe  them 
in  that  way.  They're  really  not  Japanese  at  all  except  in  the  use  of 
what  looks  like  a  Japanese  parasol.  But  they  are  confused  with 
the  Japanese  for  the  simple  reason  that  Whistler  aims  to  do  what 
the  Japanese  have  been  doing  for  many  generations — to  give  each 
canvas  purity  and  harmony  of  tone.  What  he  cares  for  most  of  all 
is  delicacy  of  color,  and  he  knows  that  delicacy  of  color  and 
delicacy  of  design  are  intimately  related.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  be- 
fore the  Japanese,  the  Chinese  worked  in  that  way,  and  before 
them  the  Byzantines." 

"But  do  we  see  such  effects  in  nature?"  I  asked. 

"Of  course,  we  do.  Nature,  after  all,  is  the  only  guide.  It's  the 
harmony  of  nature  that  all  the  great  painters  have  been  trying  to 
reproduce.  People  speak  as  if  Whistler  had  made  a  great  discov- 
ery. But  he  didn't.  His  point  of  view  was  very  like  that  of  the  old 
masters.  He  emphasized  it,  however,  with  his  peculiar  genius,  and 
he  expressed  it  through  a  temperament  that  was  original  and 
sensitive.  In  the  portrait  of  Mrs.  Huth  over  there,  he  carried  out 
the  idea  with  splendid  effect.  He  wanted  to  bring  out  the  fineness 
and  the  distinction  of  the  face  and  the  figure.  So  he  had  the  sub- 
ject dressed  simply  and  yet  richly,  in  dark  velvet,  with  touches  of 
white  at  the  throat  and  wrists,  and  he  put  her  against  a  very  dark 
background,  which  emphasized  the  face  and  head.  It  has  been  ex- 
hibited all  over  the  world  and  greatly  admired.  But,  personally, 
I  couldn't  stand  having  it  around.  The  genius  in  it  is  unquestion- 
able, but  the  effect  is  too  conscious  and  sickly.  One  gets  the  im- 
pression of  a  woman  who  has  been  bred  in  a  hothouse,  in  an  at- 
mosphere that  makes  for  refinement  without  making  for  vigor." 

"The  Falling  Rocket,"  the  painter  reminded  me,  was  the  pic- 
ture that  had  involved  Whistler  in  his  celebrated  suit  against  Rus- 
kin.  "It  illustrates  the  change  that  can  take  place  in  the  attitude 
toward  art  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  only.  To  us,  used  as  we  are 
to  the  work  of  the  impressionists,  it  doesn't  seem  at  all  unconven- 
tional, but  it  must  have  made  Ruskin  furious.  Otherwise  he  would- 
not  have  accused  Whistler  of  throwing  a  pot  of  paint  in  the  face 
of  the  public.  The  expression  illustrates  the  amenities  of  art  criti- 
cism, as  it  is  practiced  even  by  the  great.  That  trial  was  one  of 
the  most  ridiculous  sensations  connected  with  the  history  of  art. 
The  marvel  was  that  Whistler's  reputation  as  a  serious  worker 
should  have  survived  the  humiliation  of  the  award  of  damages  to 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  13 

the  extent  of  one  farthing.  But  he  regarded  the  experience  as  a 
joke,  as  he  did  many  things  in  life." 

What  could  Ruskin  have  meant  by  saying  that  "The  Falling 
Rocket"  was  a  pot  of  paint  flung  in  the  face  of  the  public?  When 
I  asked  the  painter,  as  we  stood  before  the  canvas,  dark  green  in 
tone,  the  sparks  from  the  rocket  descending  between  the  trees, 
with  glimpses  of  fire  on  the  little  lake  in  the  background,  he  re- 
plied: "His  eye  was  simply  unfamiliar  with  that  kind  of  painting. 
It  seemed  to  him  careless  and  messy  work.  He  didn't  see  the 
truth  and  the  fidelity  and  the  poetic  sensibility  in  the  execution. 
So  he  boldly  condemned,  as  so  many  of  us  do  when  we  don't 
understand,  particularly  those  of  us  who  are  in  positions  of  au- 
thority." 

The  two  nudes,  "Venus"  and  "Venus  Rising  From  the  Sea," 
the  painter  pointed  out  to  illustrate  the  difference  among  artists, 
both  painters  and  sculptors,  in  their  treatment  of  nudity.  "Whis- 
tler makes  the  figures  part  of  the  general  color  scheme.  The  flesh 
tints  blend  into  the  coloring  of  the  background.  He  gives  us  here, 
as  he  does  in  all  his  work,  a  symphony  of  color.  Till  we  relate 
ourselves  to  the  sensitiveness  in  his  work  we  can't  get  at  its  mean- 
ing or  realize  why  it's  so  greatly  admired  by  the  connoisseurs." 

"The  Study  in  Rose  and  Brown"  reminded  the  painter  of  Velas- 
quez. "In  some  ways  they  were  a  good  deal  alike,  and  this  subject 
bears  a  curious  resemblance  to  some  of  the  types  that  Velasquez 
painted.  Whistler  was  wonderfully  successful  with  his  portraits.  I 
wish  that  his  portrait  of  his  mother  might  be  here.  Besides  being 
his  greatest  popular  success,  it  expresses  all  his  philosophy  of 
painting.  It  also  shows  what  a  devoted  son  he  must  have  been.  He 
put  a  profound  tenderness  and  depth  of  feeling  into  that  canvas. 
However,  the  pictures  here  are  all  worth  study.  The  small  can- 
vases are  beautifully  done,  every  one  atmospheric." 

The  butterfly  signature  on  the  paintings,  skilfully  woven  into 
the  composition,  was  another  illustration  of  the  character  and 
method  of  the  artist.  "He  liked  to  pose  as  a  butterfly,  and  he 
loved  the  color  and  the  grace  that  the  butterfly  suggested.  But  he 
was  about  as  far  removed  in  his  real  nature  from  that  symbol  as 
anyone  could  possibly  have  been.  The  bee  would  have  represented 
him  much  more  accurately,  in  more  ways  than  one." 


THE  IMPRESSIONISTS 

VI 


VIDENTLY,  in  the  mind  of  my  guide,  Whistler 
was  a  most  significant  figure  in  the  art  of  to- 
day. "It's  the  emphasis  that  Whistler  has  given 
on  certain  aspects  of  life  that  is  so  important. 
He  had  the  good  luck  to  express  it  through  a 
unique  temperament.  Of  course,  he  owes  a 
great  deal  to  the  chance  of  his  coming  into  the 
world  just  when  he  did.  While  he  was  still  at  a 
most  impressionable  age,  young  and  ardent, 
feeling  his  way,  a  great  battle  was  going  on  among  the  painters 
of  France,  a  kind  of  rebellion.  Monet  and  Manet  and  Pissaro  and 
Sisley,  the  English  painter,  who  was  born  and  brought  up  in 
France,  and  many  others,  were  rebelling  against  the  academic 
school  that  upheld  the  traditions  of  David  and  Delaroche,  who 
liked  to  paint  story-telling  pictures  relating  to  Greece  and  Rome. 
The  new  men  were  interested  in  the  beauty  of  things  all  around 
them,  all  kinds  of  things,  and,  most  of  all,  the  light." 

The  subject  of  light  caused  the  painter  to  make  a  digression. 
"Come  along  with  me,"  he  said,  "and  I  will  show  you  a  forerunner 
of  impressionism,  the  man  that  was  an  impressionist  before  Claude 
Monet  ever  heard  the  word.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  were,  of 
course,  impressionists  long  before  the  school  of  impressionists 
came  into  being,  that  is,  men  intensely  interested  in  atmosphere 
and  in  painting  what  they  actually  saw  and  felt." 

Presently  we  stood  before  "Sunset,  Venice,"  by  Joseph  Mallard 
William  Turner.  "This  canvas  is  the  only  Turner  in  the  Exposi- 
tion and  a  good  many  people  pass  it  by  without  giving  it  a  glance. 
It's  very  typical  and  it  shows  Turner  at  his  best.  It's  curious  that 
Ruskin  should  have  raved  over  Turner  and  should  have  raged 
over  Whistler,  who,  in  a  sense,  was  directly  related  to  Turner  in 
his  attitude  toward  art.  The  two  men  loved  beauty  for  beauty's 
sake  and  they  had  the  courage  to  put  down  what  they  actually 
felt.  You  know,  of  course,  the  story  about  the  man  who  said  to 
Turner:  'I've  never  seen  anything  like  that,'  and  was  given  the 
retort,  'Ah,  but  don't  you  wish  you  could?' " 

We  spent  several  minutes  studying  this  canvas,  admiring  the 
composition,  the  wonderful  tone  of  gold,  the  rich  atmosphere,  and 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  15 

the  splendor  of  the  effect  as  a  whole.  "Only  a  poet  could  have 
done  it,"  said  the  painter.  "The  pity  is  that  there  are  not  more 
Turners  in  the  exhibit.  But  they  are  hard  to  secure.  Every  one  of 
them  is  worth  a  fortune.  Some  time  I  wish  that  we  might  have  an 
exhibition  where  the  development  of  impressionism  would  be 
studied  by  means  of  a  display  of  canvases,  starting  with  a  man 
like  Turner  and  running  down  to  the  men  of  today  who  are  repre- 
sented here  in  such  large  numbers.  It  stands  for  the  great  revo- 
lution in  modern  art,  all  the  more  interesting  because  just  now 
there  are  signs  of  a  reaction  against  it  among  the  post-impres- 
sionists and  the  futurists.  But  its  influence  is  sure  to  last.  It  af- 
fects all  painters  today,  even  those  who  are  not  generally  con- 
sidered in  any  way  related  to  impressionism." 

We  returned  to  a  room  next  to  the  Whistler  room.  "Here 
are  the  Monets,  which  will  illustrate  what  I  mean."  The  painter 
pointed  to  "Havre,  Terrace  by  the  Sea."  "When  Monet  painted 
the  'Havre'  picture  he  followed  the  conventional  method.  He  was 
a  young  man  and  he  hadn't  found  himself.  Observe  the  light  and 
the  shadow  on  the  ground.  The  shadow  is  leaden  and  the  light 
might  be  moonlight.  As  Monet  went  on  working  he  began  to 
realize  that  light  was  one  of  the  most  important  qualities  in  a 
picture,  perhaps  the  most  important  of  all.  He  saw  that  there 
was  a  decided  difference  between  the  aspects  of  the  same  scene  at 
different  times  of  the  day.  He  said  that  if  the  light  was  properly 
handled  it  ought  to  be  easy  for  anyone  who  understood  light  to 
know  just  when  outdoor  pictures  were  painted,  even  to  the  hour 
of  the  day.  Now,  that  hay-stack  was  obviously  painted  of  a  sum- 
mer's evening.  It  was  a  good  idea  on  the  part  of  the  Exposition 
authorities  to  secure  Monets  that  should  represent  the  painter  in 
the  different  periods  of  his  career." 

"And  the  way  the  paint  is  put  on,"  I  remarked,  "is  so  different 
in  the  haystack  from  the  way  it's  put  on  in  'Havre.' " 

"Monet  completely  changed  his  method.  He  developed  the  the- 
ory that  the  painter  should  follow  nature's  method  of  throwing 
light  on  objects.  So  he  analyzed  light.  He  decomposed  it.  He  got 
at  the  prismatic  colors.  Those  colors  he  put  on  his  canvas,  with 
the  idea  that  the  spectator's  eye  would  recompense  them.  In  order 
to  recompose  them  we  ought  to  stand  away  from  the  canvas. 
When  we  get  too  close  we  see  the  paint  in  blotches,  put  on  heavy 
for  the  purpose  of  giving  the  atmospheric  effect.  In  an  exposition 
it  is  inevitable  that  some  of  the  pictures,  particularly  those  worked 


16  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

out  on  a  large  plan,  shall  appear  at  a  disadvantage.  If  one  has  to 
stand  too  close  the  best  that  can  be  done  is  to  look  through  half- 
closed  eyes.  However,  these  Monets  are  well  placed  here.  One  can 
get  the  fine  atmospheric  quality  in  the  most  impressionistic  of  them. 
See  how  beautifully  the  mist  is  indicated  in  the  Seine  at  Portvil- 
lers.  Monet  shows  us  the  wonderful  bits  of  color  just  breaking 
through.  And  the  picture  of  the  town  of  Vetheuil,  very  like  his 
own  village  of  Giverny,  near  Rouen,  is  one  of  his  most  character- 
istic studies.  At  home  he  likes  to  go  out  in  the  early  morning  with 
a  wheelbarrow  containing  a  half-dozen  canvases.  He  puts  them  up 
in  a  semicircle  and  he  works  on  them,  one  after  another,  as  the 
light  changes." 

Then  the  painter  told  me  about  the  struggle  Monet  and  his 
little  group  had  for  recognition.  "Year  after  year  they  would  send 
canvases  to  the  salon  in  Paris  and  they  would  be  turned  down.  At 
last,  in  the  late  sixties,  Napoleon  III  interfered.  He  suggested  that 
the  new  men  be  given  a  place  by  themselves  in  the  exposition,  and 
that  their  department  should  be  called,  'The  Salon  of  the  Re- 
fused.* One  of  the  first  of  the  pictures  that  Monet  sent  in  was  a 
sunset  called  'Impressions:  Sunset.'  Then  someone  called  the 
whole  group  of  painters  'Impressionists.'  Manet  said,  'I  don't  care 
what  they  call  us.'  Soon  the  name  became  fixed,  and  now  it  is 
generally  accepted  as  a  good  description.  As  we  go  through  the 
Exposition  we  shall  find  that  nearly  all  the  work  done  during  the 
past  twenty-five  years,  whether  it  is  impressionistic  or  not,  has 
been  influenced  by  Monet  and  Manet  and  their  school.  There  are 
several  other  Monets  in  the  French  Building,  but  there  is  only 
one  Manet  there,  the  only  one  in  the  whole  Exposition.  It  would 
have  been  interesting  to  study  his  work  in  connection  with  Whis- 
tler. They  were  both  strongly  influenced  in  their  technique  by 
Velasquez.  The  impressionists  opened  up  an  entirely  new  field  of 
art,  and,  in  so  doing,  they  opened  up  a  new  field  of  beauty  in  the 
world.  They  made  us  see  beauty  where  we  had  been  unaware  of 
it  before,  or  only  partly  aware.  They  showed  us  that,  just  as  music 
was  the  poetry  of  sound,  painting  was  the  poetry  of  sight." 

We  stopped  in  front  of  a  picture  that  looked  curiously  like  an 
old  master.  The  painter  pointed  to  two  others  in  exactly  the  same 
manner.  "Adolphe  Monticelli  was  a  contemporary  of  Monet  and 
Manet,  but  he  died  comparatively  young.  He  worked  for  some 
time  in  Paris,  without  success.  Then  he  went  back  to  Marseilles. 
He  was  often  glad  to  sell  a  picture  for  a  few  francs.  He  put  his 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  17 

paint  on  very  thickly.  When  you  are  close  to  the  canvas  you  see 
practically  nothing  but  paint  in  blotches.  But  when  you  stand  at  a 
distance  the  picture  composes  itself  and  takes  on  a  fine  variety 
of  color  and  tone  and  a  wonderful  liveliness.  See  how  fond  he  is 
of  russet  colors.  They  give  his  work  very  great  richness  and 
depth.  It  doesn't  make  any  difference  what  his  subject  is,  he  makes 
it  interesting  and  individual  by  his  treatment." 

When  the  painter  turned  away  I  followed.  "Now  I  am  going  to 
give  you  a  little  surprise,"  he  said.  He  stopped  before  a  wall  that 
contained  eight  canvases  curiously  like  those  we  had  beeen  admir- 
ing. "Walter  Griffin  paints  after  the  same  method.  For  that  reason 
he  is  often  compared  with  Monticelli.  But  he  has  his  own  indi- 
viduality. See  what  magnificent  effects  he  gets  by  those  Monti- 
celli russet  tones  in  his  Venetian  scenes.  He  knows  the  value  that 
goes  with  broken  color.  Now  let  us  go  to  see  the  work  of  another 
man  who  is  a  master  in  this  kind  of  technique,  Childe  Hassam." 

On  the  way  we  stopped  to  look  at  the  work  of  a  San  Francisco 
painter  that  my  guide  particularly  admired,  Miss  E.  Charlton  For- 
tune, represented  by  seven  canvases.  "Miss  Fortune  is  one  of  the 
most  promising  of  all  our  painters,"  he  said.  "See  this  fine  'Car- 
mel  Mission.'  It  has  been  bought  by  William  M.  Chase.  I'd  rather 
have  a  picture  of  mine  bought  by  Chase  than  get  all  the  medals 
either  here  or  anywhere  else.  I  think  I  can  understand  why  Chase 
likes  this  picture  so  much.  Though  it's  indoors,  it's  full  of  light, 
and  its  done  with  great  strength,  with  virility.  And  the  tone  is 
beautiful.  The  shadow  is  very  lightly  indicated.  Everything  keeps 
its  place.  Men  like  Sargent  and  Whistler  would  be  interested  in 
work  of  this  kind.  They  both  learned  from  Velasquez  the  impor- 
tance of  keeping  the  figures  on  the  canvas  behind  the  frame,  with 
every  detail  properly  subordinated." 

Before  we  reached  the  Hassam  room  we  lingered  before  four 
pictures  by  Birge  Harrison,  delicate  pastelle  work,  very  atmos- 
pheric. And  in  presence  of  those  thirty  Hassam  canvases  we  fairly 
bathed  in  atmosphere.  One  immediately  attracted  my  attention,  the 
most  brilliant  in  the  room  and,  according  to  my  view,  the  most 
beautiful — "Sunset:  New  England  Coast."  "How  that  picture  illus- 
trates Monet's  theory  that  you  ought  to  be  able  to  tell  the  time 
of  day  and  the  atmospheric  conditions  of  a  painting.  Anyone 
would  know  that  the  scene  was  late  in  summer  and  about  seven 
o'clock  in  the  evening.  Hassam  gets  his  opalescences  and  his  vi- 


18     .  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

brating  effects  by  using  many  colors  and  by  keeping  his  values 
well  arranged.  He  has  developed  a  wonderful  technical  skill  by 
working  in  every  medium.  You  will  find  here  water  colors,  water 
colors  on  tinted  paper,  and  pastelles,  and  other  varieties.  Hassam 
is  very  delicate  in  his  use  of  the  colored  chalk  that  gives  some  of 
the  most  poetic  effects  in  the  pastelle  work.  The  color  comes  in 
powder.  Then  it  is  mixed  with  paste  into  sticks.  These  canvases 
make  one  see  what  Hassam  can  do  when  he  works  under  favorable 
conditions.  That  mural  decoration  of  his  in  the  Court  of  Palms 
shows  how  he  was  handicapped  by  working  under  conditions  that 
he  didn't  understand.  Lack  of  experience  in  that  kind  of  painting 
made  him  miscalculate.  In  all  of  the  pictures  here  he  gives  evi- 
dence of  possessing  a  marvelously  keen  color  sense.  When  he  was 
out  here  painting  his  mural  he  did  some  paintings  on  our  Califor- 
nia hills.  He  shows  how  they  looked  to  him  in  snring.  He  caught 
them  perfectly.  They  are  California  all  over.  But  the  shadows  are 
a  little  cooler  than  most  California  painters  make  them.  It  ex- 
presses something  about  the  atmosphere  in  this  part  of  California 
that  a  good  many  Easterners  feel  when  they  come  out  here." 

As  we  passed  from  canvas  to  canvas  the  painter  pointed  out  to 
me  evidences  of  Hassam's  fine  decorative  sense.  It  extended  even 
to  the  frames.  Several  of  those  frames  were  masterpieces.  So  often 
the  frame  of  a  picture  damaged  or  weakened  or  flatly  contradicted 
the  picture's  meaning. 


FRIESEKE,  TANNER  AND  MELCHERS 

VII 


|ROM  Hassam  we  went  to  another  open-air  man, 
the  winner  of  the  grand  prize,  Frederic  Carl 
Frieseke.  When  I  asked  the  painter  if  there 
had  been  a  great  surprise  among  the  artists 
when  the  award  was  announced,  he  shook  his 
head.  In  his  opinion  Frieseke  was  a  marvel. 
"You  can  see  at  a  glance  what  individuality  he 
has.  After  studying  one  of  his  canvases  it  is 
easy  enough  to  pick  out  the  other.  They  all 
have  a  mellow  quality,  and  they  all  show  the  most  careful  atten- 
tion to  light.  Consider  for  example,  'Summer.'  The  treatment  of 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  19 

that  nude  figure  and  of  the  details  in  the  surroundings  is  particu- 
larly good.  Perhaps  only  a  painter  can  see  what  a  difficult  prob- 
lem Frieseke  set  himself  there.  The  whole  picture  is  worked  out 
in  a  very  light  atmosphere.  Even  the  shadows  are  light.  The  color 
scheme  is  admirable,  the  pearly  tones  warmed  by  the  use  of  the 
pink  drapery.  The  coloring  of  the  picture  as  a  whole  reminds  me 
of  the  tints  in  the  interior  of  an  abalone  shell." 

"There  is  one  quality  in  Frieseke  that  I  particularly  admire," 
continued  the  painter — "his  fine  sense  of  the  decorative.  It  is  well 
displayed  in  his  simple  picture  of  the  'Girl  Embroidering/  which 
some  people  think  won  for  him  the  grand  prize.  It's  a  great  pic- 
ture, but  the  prize  went  to  Frieseke's  work  as  a  whole.  Though 
there's  strength  in  the  way  Frieseke  handles  his  brush,  he  has  a 
remarkable  delicacy  of  modeling.  His  treatment  of  the  neck  of  the 
girl  is  particularly  skillful  in  its  suggestion  of  extreme  refinement. 
It  is  only  one  value  removed  from  the  background,  and  yet  it  is 
instinct  with  tenderness  and  life.  And  observe  how  the  color  in 
the  hair  is  broken,  giving  the  sense  of  vitality  there.  Frieseke  re- 
peats his  color  notes  as  Whistler  did.  If  you  find  a  spot  of  red  in 
one  place  you'll  be  sure  to  see  it  repeated  in  another  to  keep  it 
from  standing  out  in  the  picture.  Everything  he  does  shows  a 
clear  understanding  of  values.  What  mellowness  he  gets  in 
'Youth.'  The  girl  in  the  chair  is  actually  sitting  there,  resting  her 
whole  weight.  The  whole  scene  vibrates  with  life." 

There  was  a  picture  by  an  American  painter  that  next  held  our 
attention  for  a  long  time,  "Christ  at  the  Home  of  Lazarus,"  by 
Henry  O.  Tanner.  "Only  a  very  spiritual  man  could  have  painted 
that  picture.  The  whole  arrangement  is  simple  and  sincere  and 
reverential.  In  the  treatment  of  the  head  of  Christ  Tanner  follows 
tradition;  but  he  manages  at  the  same  time  to  suggest  the  ming- 
ling of  the  human  and  the  divine  in  his  own  way.  The  figure  to 
the  right  of  the  canvas  represents  Tanner  himself.  Many  modern 
painters  have  introduced  themselves  into  groups  seated  at  table 
with  Christ.  Perhaps  the  most  notable  work  of  the  kind  is  Von 
Uhde's.  Tanner  is  a  mulatto.  He  has  lived  for  many  years  abroad. 
There's  a  painting  of  him  in  here  by  Eakins.  It  shows  his  face 
more  clearly  than  this  portrait,  though  this  portrait  is  very  life- 
like. He  is  one  of  the  most  spiritual  of  men.  He  likes  living  abroad 
and  I  suppose  he  will  stay  there  for  the  rest  of  his  life.  He  once 
said  to  me:  'I  have  an  opportunity  over  here.  I'm  treated  like 


20  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

everyone  else.'  One  of  the  best  known  of  his  paintings,  'The  Rais- 
ing of  Lazarus,'  was  bought  by  the  French  government.  It  has  a 
rich  amber  quality,  like  a  Rembrandt.  Since  the  time  he  painted 
it  his  work  has  become  much  more  varied  in  color,  and  it  has 
much  more  light.  Here,  as  you  can  see,  there's  plenty  of  light." 

Another  figure  of  Christ  we  found  in  the  Gari  Melchers'  room, 
"Supper  at  Emmaus."  "It's  more  conventional  than  Tanner's  and 
not  nearly  so  fine  in  feeling,"  said  the  painter.  "There's  something 
theatrical  about  the  work  as  a  whole,  and  something  detached  and 
aristocratic  in  the  figure  of  Christ.  So  many  pictures  associated 
with  Christ  fail  in  this  way.  It  seems  to  me  that  Christ  was  essen- 
tially a  democrat,  one  who  mingled  with  people  easily  and  freely, 
on  terms  of  equality.  However,  Melchers  can  paint,  and  he  can 
paint  magnificently,  as  anyone  can  see  by  glancing  over  this  room. 
Could  anything  be  finer  in  its  wav  than  his  'Sailor  and  His  Sweet- 
heart." Both  figures  are  typically  Dutch.  The  man  is  dumb  and 
heavy  and  unemotional,  looking  blankly  out  on  life  with  those 
clear  blue  eyes  that  suggest  natural  goodness.  The  woman  is  mar- 
velously  well  done.  See  the  adoration  that  is  expressed  by  her 
resting  her  hand  on  the  man's  hand  and  by  her  timid  staring  into 
his  face.  Though  Melchers  was  born  in  Detroit,  of  German  stock, 
he  has  spent  a  large  part  of  his  life  abroad.  He  studied  in  France 
and  he  lived  in  Holland  for  many  years.  Like  a  good  many  other 
American  painters,  he  is  very  fond  of  Holland  and  Holland 
scenes.  He  has  made  a  great  reputation  for  his  painting  of  Dutch 
types.  Some  time  ago  he  was  given  a  professorship  in  the  Weimar 
School  of  Fine  Arts.  In  Holland  he  made  a  collection  of  the  old 
embroidered  stuffs  worn  by  the  women.  You'll  often  see  them  in 
his  Dutch  pictures.  In  the  'Sailor  and  His  Sweetheart'  the  girl 
wears  a  very  beautiful  piece  and  it  is  painted  with  marvelous 
skill." 

My  eye  was  attracted  by  the  splendid  painting  of  "The  Smithy," 
one  of  the  most  conspicuous  of  the  canvases,  the  central  figure 
seeming  to  personify  the  spirit  of  the  honest  and  healthy  Dutch 
laborer.  "How  did  Melchers  get  his  scene  there?"  I  asked.  "It 
must  have  been  very  hard  to  compose  it,  with  the  figures  and  all 
the  detail,  in  a  studio." 

"The  chances  are  that  he  did  it  right  on  the  spot.  Over  in 
Europe  painters  often  go  about  working  in  that  way.  The  practice 
is  very  common  in  Holland,  so  common  that  people  aren't  intense- 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  21 

ly  curious  as  they  would  be  in  this  country.  The  whole  attitude 
toward  art  over  there  is,  of  course,  very  different  from  what  it  is 
here.  That's  why  so  many  American  painters  like  to  expatriate 
themselves.  They  feel  more  at  home  when  they're  abroad.  A  paint- 
er that  I  know  tells  a  story  about  an  experience  he  had  shortly 
after  he  returned  from  Paris  to  this  country.  One  day  he  was  sit- 
ting by  a  roadside  working  on  a  landscape.  An  old  man  came 
along,  driving  a  wagon,  and  called  out  to  him:  'Hey,  you  lazy 
fellow,  why  don't  you  get  to  work?' " 

The  story  reminded  me  of  a  story  that  'William.  H.  Howe,  the 
cattle  painter,  tells  to  illustrate  the  indignities  of  the  artist's  call- 
ing in  this  country.  On  one  occasion  he  called  on  a  cattleman  to 
ask  permission  to  paint  some  of  the  cattle  on  the  place.  The  man 
was  friendly  and  readily  gave  his  consent.  "What  do  you  do  for 
a  living?"  he  asked.  "I  paint,"  Howe  replied,  somewhat  surprised. 
The  man  showed  that  he  was  disappointed.  He  looked  Howe  all 
over.  Then  he  said,  with  reproach  in  his  voice:  "Why  don't  you  do 
something  that's  manly?" 

"People  who  take  that  attitude  toward  art  have  no  idea  of  the 
immense  amount  of  labor  that  goes  into  a  canvas,"  said  the  paint- 
er. "They  think  it  must  be  easy  because,  after  the  work  is  done,  it 
looks  so  easy.  However,  you  can  see  that  a  man  like  Gari  Melchers 
really  enjoys  his  work,  and  that  it  brings  a  great  enrichment  into 
his  life.  He's  at  his  best  in  indoor  scenes,  in  spite  of  his  brilliant 
treatment  of  light.  Out  of  doors  he  is  inclined  to  be  a  little  chalky. 
Only  a  big  man  could  have  painted  that  woman  nursing  a  child, 
'Maternity,'  a  man  with  fineness  and  tenderness  of  feeling  and  with 
insight  and  a  capacity  for  taking  pains.  Of  all  our  painters  he  is 
one  of  the  most  virile.  So  many  painters  in  their  work  suggest 
that  they  have  lost  touch  with  every-day  living,  as  if  somehow 
their  thought  and  feeling  had  become  attenuated.  Melchers  gives 
the  impression  of  being  absolutely  sound  in  his  point  of  view,  one 
who  stands  firmly  on  his  feet  and  looks  life  straight  in  the  face 
and  is  in  sympathy  with  all  earthly  things.  He  presents  all  his 
types  in  a  way  that  gives  them  a  fine  human  significance." 


THE  SWEDISH  SECTION 

VIII 

[F  YOU  want  to  see  impressionism  worked  out 
in  a  new  way,"  said  the  painter,  "we  ought  to 
give  some  time  to  the  Swedish  section." 

When  we  arrived  the  painter  went  on:  "I 
suppose  that  no  country  in  the  world  has  failed 
to  be  influenced  by  the  impressionistic  school. 
But  in  every  country  it  has  shown  itself  in 
ways  that  are  more  or  less  different,  some- 
times strikingly  so.  From  a  school  or  from  a 
master  one  painter  may  receive  one  kind  of  influence,  and  another 
painter  may  receive  another  kind,  and  all  painters  are  bound  to  be 
affected  by  the  national  temperament.  For  example,  people  often 
wonder  how  Whistler  and  Sargent  could  both  havev  been  influ- 
enced by  Velasquez,  when  they  paint  in  such  different  styles. 
Whistler  got  tonal  suggestions  and  Sargent  got  his  technique." 

As  we  looked  at  those  canvases  by  Gustav  Adolf  Fjaestad 
we  needed  no  great  understanding  to  realize  that  we  were  in  the 
presence  of  a  master.  "Though  Fjaestad  works  along  the  lines  of 
Whistler,  he  has  a  distinct  quality  of  his  own.  In  fact,  of  all  the 
impressionistic  painters  of  Sweden,  he  is  the  most  distinctive.  He 
is  not  photographic  or  realistic.  He  paints  what  appeals  to  him 
and  everything  he  does  he  makes  decorative.  But  before  we  go 
into  his  pictures  in  detail  let's  have  a  look  at  the  portrait  he  has 
made  of  himself.  It's  always  interesting  to  see  the  man  behind  the 
work." 

We  stood  before  a  vigorously  outlined  sketch  of  a  man  in  mid- 
dle life,  with  a  smooth,  deeply-lined  face,  strong  features  and 
deep-set,  keen  eyes.  "See  how  much  he  gives  you  in  a  few  strokes. 
And  how  decorative  he  makes  the  sketch  as  a  whole.  Even  there 
he  shows  his  decorative  instinct.  If  he  had  chosen  he  might  have 
made  himself  a  great  portrait  painter,  but  he  preferred  landscape, 
just  as  Sargent  does,  in  spite  of  a  lifetime  of  success  in  portrait 
painting.  Landscape  is,  in  some  ways,  much  more  attractive  to  the 
big  worker  who  takes  an  impersonal  attitude  toward  life.  It  brings 
him  up  against  something  more  inspiring  than  little  man,  nature  in 
her  infinite  variety." 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  23 

We  went  from  canvas  to  canvas  to  study  Fjaestad's  reactions 
from  his  observations.  That  he  loved  nature  was  plain  enough, 
but  he  was  not  content  to  follow  nature  slavishly.  He  selected  and 
he  rearranged  according  to  his  own  fancy.  "He  would  laugh  if  he 
could  hear  our  American  self-made  critics  talk  about  the  impor- 
tance of  making  things  literal." 

"And  yet  you  always  get  the  impression  of  nature  in  his  work," 
I  said. 

"Exactly,  because  he  is  a  true  and  searching  observer.  Like 
all  the  big  men,  he  teaches  us  how  to  observe.  His  'Winter  Moon- 
light,' for  example,  is  a  masterpiece  of  observation  which  he  turns 
into  a  marvelously  fine  decoration.  The  branches  of  the  trees,  cov- 
ered with  snow,  he  places  low  in  the  picture,  in  the  foreground, 
and  almost  in  the  center  of  the  canvas,  high  in  the  sky,  he  places 
the  moon,  which  fills  the  whole  scene  with  a  subdued  radiance, 
and  gives  us  the  feeling  that  the  atmosphere  is  rich  and  thick. 
What  is  most  wonderful  about  the  work  is  that  it  catches  the 
feeling  of  the  scene." 

Another  snow  picture,  "Hoar  Frost  in  Sunlight,"  showed  how 
completely  Fjaestad  had  identified  himself  with  the  open-air 
school.  On  the  thick  snow  lay  the  delicate  purple  shadows  that 
might  have  been  painted  by  Monet,  harmonizing  with  the  color  of 
the  boughs  to  the  left.  Through  the  snow-encrusted  white  trees 
played  the  warm  light.  "Even  his  color  here  was  decorative,"  said 
the  painter.  "It  pleases  him  to  make  some  of  those  boughs  white 
and  others  blue.  So  he  does  it,  without  stopping  to  consider 
whether  nature  does  the  same  thing  or  not." 

"Summer  Evening  at  the  River"  and  "Summer  Night's  Breeze" 
made  us  see  that  Fjaestad  shared  the  fondness  of  Monticelli  and 
many  another  painter  for  russet  brown.  In  both  canvases  he  con- 
trasted it  with  other  colors.  "Summer  Evening  at  the  River"  was, 
indeed,  among  the  loveliest  of  all  his  color  schemes.  But  perhaps 
the  most  daring  and  remarkable  effect  was  to  be  found  in  "Moon- 
light on  the  Mountain  Lake,"  where  the  moon,  not  revealed  in 
her  place  in  the  sky,  glowed  from  the  lake's  depths  behind  a  wide 
rowboat  that  might  have  seemed  ugly  if  it  had  not  been  so  skil- 
fully used  in  the  decoration. 

"You  feel  the  presence  of  a  splendid  artistic  intelligence  be- 
hind all  these  canvases,"  said  the  painter,  "and  a  skilled  crafts- 


24  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

manship.  They  are  very  remarkable  for  their  application  to  purely 
decorative  work,  which  is  often  so  formal,  of  principles  that  give  it 
life  and  color  and  variety.  They  are  so  strong  that  they  would  be 
likely  to  kill  any  other  canvases  that  were  placed  nearby.  Those 
tapestries  up  there,  you  see,  express  the  same  kind  of  imagina- 
tion. They  were  designed  by  Fjaestad  and  worked  out  by  his  sis- 
ter." 

In  the  room  leading  directly  from  the  Fjaestad  pictures  we 
found  the  work  of  another  brilliant  Swedish  painter,  Anna  Bo- 
berg.  "She  has  the  vigor  of  a  man  in  her  work.  Like  Fjaestad,  she 
is  fond  of  outdoor  scenes,  but  she  isn't  so  decorative.  She  keeps 
much  closer  to  realistic  effects.  'The  First  Snow  in  the  Mountains' 
was  probably  painted  with  great  speed,  which  doesn't  mean  that 
it  was  not  carefully  done.  Often  painters  do  their  best  work  at 
white  heat,  and  the  atmospheric  painters  often  have  to  catch  their 
effects  swiftly  or  lose  them  altogether.  This  big,  sweeping  can- 
vas represents  good  bravura  work.  It  seizes  the  impression  and 
gives  it  to  us  by  means  of  sweeping  and  powerful  brush  strokes. 
Note  the  strength  and  the  splendor  of  coloring  in  that  smaller 
canvas  of  Anna  Boberg's  'Drying  the  Sails.'  It  could  have  been 
done  only  by  an  able  technician." 

As  the  painter  and  I  passed  from  canvas  to  canvas  by  Anna 
Boberg,  I  spoke  of  the  masculine  vigor  of  her  style.  "It's  charac- 
teristic of  the  Swedish  women  painters;  just  why  I  don't  know, 
perhaps  on  account  of  the  rigor  of  the  climate,  perhaps  some  in- 
herent national  traits.  At  any  rate,  they  don't  waste  their  time  over 
mere  prettiness  or  weak  sentimental  painting." 

The  titles  of  Anna  Boberg's  work  interested  the  painter.  He 
called  my  attention  to  their  lack  of  direct  description.  "Hilly 
Country,"  "Cliffs,"  "Sunny  Recess  in  the  Mountains,"  "The  Fish- 
er's Cemetery"  and  "Arctic  Night." 

"You  see,  she  doesn't  care  to  tell  you  that  this  picture  or  that 
represents  a  particular  place.  She  isn't  interested  in  competing 
with  photographs.  She's  not  a  servile  copyist.  But  she  does  care  for 
outdoor  painting  and  she  wants  us  to  realize  her  purpose,  which 
is  to  catch  effects  of  light  and  shade.  She  is  particularly  success- 
ful in  her  use  of  broken  color  and  in  the  securing  of  rich  tones." 

The  three  canvases  by  Otto  Hesselbom  reminded  us  both  of 
Fjaestad,  though  they  were  less  subjective.  "My  Native  Land" 
showed  great  skill  on  making  the  landscape  both  fine  in  coloring 
and  highly  decorative.  He  painted  with  a  broad  stroke  and  he 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  25 

was  fond  of  combinations  of  blue  and  russet,  favored  by  the  Eng- 
lish painter,  Brangwyn.  Another  Swedish  painter  with  a  fondness 
for  russet  was  Axel  Kulle.  Then  there  was  one  of  those  great 
women  painters,  Elsa  Backlund-Celsing,  whose  work  showed  she 
was  always  looking  for  decoration.  She  did  not  paint  with  so  full 
a  brush  as  some  of  the  others,  but  she  used  a  vigorous  stroke  and 
her  figures  were  just  as  well  developed. 

The  work  of  Oscar  Hullgren  stirred  the  painter  to  enthusiasm. 
"This  man  knows  how  to  paint  the  sea.  And  he  knows  the  sea 
in  different  moods  and  each  mood  that  he  treats  is  distinct.  In 
'Sun  Glitter  on  the  Sea'  we  get  the  happy  play  of  light  over  the 
surface.  But  in  'The  Sea'  we  get  the  sea  that  swallowed  up  the 
Lusitania.  Hullgren  gives  us  the  sense  of  power  and  cruelty  and 
of  the  terrible  loneliness  that  goes  with  the  sea's  mystery.  It's 
not  a  story-telling  picture  and  yet  it  tells  its  own  story.  It  has 
imaginative  depth.  It's  the  kind  of  work  that  will  make  you  rea- 
lize just  why  so  many  painters  dislike  a  canvas  like  Hovenden's 
'Breaking  Home  Ties'." 

"But  there's  a  good  homely  sentiment  in  Hovenden's  work,"  I 
insisted. 

"Exactly.  That's  just  what  it  is.  If  you  translate  it  into  liter- 
ary terms  you  get  something  like  the  poetry  of  James  Whitcomb 
Riley.  But  you  don't  get  Milton.  You  don't  get  profundity.  Now 
that's  what  you  do  get  in  this  sea  picture  of  Hullgren's.  There's 
another  picture  that  is  very  popular,  in  the  class  with  Hovenden's, 
Luke  Fildes'  'The  Doctor.'  You  know  it,  of  course,  the  kindly, 
middle-aged  doctor  sitting  at  the  bedside  of  a  sick  child.  It's  all 
right  in  its  way,  but  it  isn't  great  art.  Compare  it  with  the  picture 
of  the  old  merchant,  bowed  down  with  care,  by  George  Frederick 
Watts,  'For  He  Had  Great  Possessions,'  and  you'll  see  the  differ- 
ence. There's  a  magnificent  story-telling  canvas.  And  the  reason 
is  that  the  story  has  great  depth  and  has  to  express  itself  by  a 
great  conception.  That  figure  seems  to  be  weighed  down  by  all 
the  material  cares  of  the  world.  In  itself  it's  an  arraignment  of  the 
kind  of  civilization  that  encourages  the  piling  up  of  wealth." 

Still  I  was  not  wholly  convinced.  "But  there's  a  place  in  paint- 
ing, isn't  there,  for  those  gentle  human  stories  that  touch  the 
heart?  It  seems  to  me  that  the  world  is  losing  something  by  their 
going  out  of  fashion  among  painters." 

"Unquestionably  there's  a  place  and  there  always  will  be.  And 
there  will  always  be  painters  whose  natural  tendency  will  be  to 


26  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

express  themselves  in  that  way.  In  'Breaking  Home  Ties'  H oven- 
den  expressed  the  fineness  and  the  sympathy  in  his  own  character. 
Do  you  know  what  happened  to  him  at  the  end?  Well,  he  was 
walking  along  the  street  and  he  saw  a  child  just  about  to  be  run 
over  by  a  street  car.  He  rushed  forward,  threw  the  child  out  of 
the  way  and  was  killed  himself." 

We  had  for  a  moment  got  away  from  the  Swedes,  but  not  from 
the  human  spirit  behind  them,  as  I  realized  when  we  came  upon 
the  work  of  John  Bauer  and  Carl  Larsson.  They  were,  to  be  sure, 
saturated  with  the  Swedish  feeling,  but  they  were  first  of  all  hu- 
man, both  lovers  of  their  kind,  with  a  soft  spot  in  their  hearts  for 
children. 

In  the  Larsson  room  we  had  a  feast.  And,  incidentally,  we 
both  felt  as  if  we  had  met  in  an  intimate  way  a  very  original  and 
delightful  character,  the  man  behind  the  work.  "Here's  a  man," 
said  the  painter,  "that  can  stay  away  from  the  life  of  the  city  and 
be  happy  at  home,  working  at  his  painting,  enjoying  his  family 
and  making  his  home  beautiful.  Some  painters  go  far  afield  for 
their  subjects.  Larsson,  you  see,  finds  subjects  in  his  own  house 
and  garden.  He  paints  the  rooms,  with  the  family  living  there,  and 
he  makes  every  scene  life-like  and  beautiful  in  feeling.  Here  are 
story-telling  pictures,  if  you  like,  with  genius  in  them  and  the 
healthiest  kind  of  sentiment,  of  universal  appeal.  Now  and  then 
you  catch  a  glimpse  of  Larsson  himself,  with  his  happy  Swedish 
face,  very  blond,  yellow  mustache  and  blue  eyes,  working  at  a 
table,  with  his  boy  looking  on,  or  reflected  in  a  mirror.  In  one 
canvas  we  see  furniture  that  we  find  in  another  canvas  outside, 
under  the  trees.  And  note  how  skillful  he  is  in  his  drawing.  If 
you  find  a  spot  of  red  in  one  place  in  the  canvas  you'll  be  sure 
to  find  it  carried  on  in  another,  after  the  fashion  of  Whistler  and 
the  Japanese.  Somehow  he  has  managed  to  make  you  feel  that  his 
own  happy  spirit  pervades  that  family  life.  And  you  can  catch  his 
kindly,  humorous  attitude  toward  the  others.  You  may  be  sure 
he's  the  life  of  the  place  and  everybody  is  his  friend.  The  old 
grandmother,  a  little  infirm  and  lame,  is  treated  with  fine  tender- 
ness and  fidelity.  This  collection  of  domestic  studies  is  marvelous 
in  its  way.  And  the  sketches  of  nude  figures  show  that  Larsson 
has  a  wide  range  of  talent  and  a  superb  technique." 

Those  Larsson  pictures  caused  the  painter  to  express  some  re- 
gret that,  in  this  country,  we  did  not  have  anyone  who  did  similar 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  27 

work.  "Larsson  is  a  public  institution  in  Sweden,"  he  said.  "Of 
all  the  Swedish  painters  he  is  the  most  beloved.  He  has  endeared 
himself  to  the  children  by  his  illustrated  books,  full  of  good 
feeling  and  healthy  humor.  There's  a  Swedish  saying,  'When 
Larsson  laughs,  all  Sweden  laughs.'  In  his  pictures  there's  a  whole 
philosophy  of  living.  The  domestic  series  here  might  be  called, 
'How  to  be  happy  with  your  own  family.'  Nearly  every  one  of 
them  shows  that  Larsson  takes  a  humorous  attitude  toward  life. 
And  yet  there  is  depth  of  feeling  suggested  here  and  there.  'The 
Home's  Angel,'  with  the  spirit  of  the  mother  standing  in  the 
nursery,  could  only  have  been  done  by  a  painter  who  was  a  poet, 
too.  'The  Old  Room'  is  the  guest  room.  Many  distinguished  trav- 
elers in  Sweden  have  slept  in  that  bed.  Just  to  amuse  himself 
Larsson  has  put  there  the  figure  of  a  naughty  boy.  'Wash  House/ 
by  its  coloring,  suggests  blue  Monday.  Larsson  lets  us  see  the 
home  in  all  its  varieties  of  activity.  And  he  makes  the  pictures 
significant  by  infusing  them  with  his  own  spirit." 

The  painter  went  on  to  emphasize  the  difference  between  this 
kind  of  work  and  mere  photography.  The  camera  could  paint 
sharp  surfaces,  and  could  reproduce  what  actually  existed  in  out- 
line, but  it  couldn't  dp  summer  and  winter  air,  and  it  couldn't  put 
imagination  and  feeling  into  a  scene,  the  qualities  derived  only 
through  human  consciousness.  The  trouble  with  most  people  in 
looking  at  pictures  was  that  they  expected  exactness  and  they  kept 
in  mind  the  reputation  of  objects.  In  art  it  was  not  reality  that 
counted,  it  was  reality  expressed  through  imagination  and  mind 
and  character,  through  all  those  influences  that  developed  interest- 
ing and  artistic  reactions.  The  Swedish  painters  had  caught  the 
impressionistic  philosophy  and  had  applied  it  with  wonderful 
success.  Then,  too,  they  had  the  advantage  of  living  in  natural 
conditions  that  were  very  inspiring  to  the  artist.  Anna  Boberg, 
for  example,  found  her  subjects  farther  north  than  any  other 
painter  had  gone.  Those  rugged  arctic  scenes  must  have  helped 
to  make  her  treatment  broad,  broader,  in  some  ways,  than  that  of 
any  other  painter  in  the  exhibit.  On  the  other  hand,  there  were 
Swedish  painters  who  dealt  with  milder  aspects  of  nature  and 
showed  a  similar  power. 

In  a  few  moments  we  were  standing  before  the  three  masterly 
canvases  by  Alfred  Bergstrom,  representing  spring  and  summer 
scenes.  In  the  opinion  of  the  painter,  "Spring  Evening"  was 


28  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

among  the  finest  of  the  pictures  in  the  exhibit,  true  to  the  land 
and  carefully  worked  out  in  feeling  and  in  execution,  to  be  com- 
pared with  Metcalfe's  work.  Another  picture  charmed  us  both, 
Schultzberg's  "Midsummer  Night,"  a  study  of  the  midnight  sun, 
painted  after  midnight,  very  beautiful,  the  only  picure  of  the  kind 
in  the  collection.  Among  the  other  canvases  by  the  same  hand, 
nine  altogether,  we  liked  the  snow  scenes  the  best,  brilliant  ex- 
amples of  open-air  work.  "When  you  look  at  those  pictures,  you 
can  realize  what  a  tremendous  change  impressionism  made  in 
painting.  In  my  opinion  Monet  was  as  great  a  pioneer  as  Rubens, 
who  discovered  the  importance  of  placing  together  warm  and  cold 
tones.  Other  men  before  him  had  been  working  on  similar  lines. 
Constable  did  a  great  deal  to  make  the  impressionist  movement 
possible.  Before  him  no  one  thought  of  painting  landscapes  for 
their  own  sake.  They  were  principally  decorative  backgrounds. 
Whether  Monet  ever  saw  the  work  of  Turner  I  don't  know.  But 
long  before  Monet  came  forward  Turner  had  been  doing  magnifi- 
cent pioneering.  It  subjected  him  to  a  great  deal  of  ridicule.  It  used 
to  be  said  that  Turner  painted  his  pictures  by  sitting  on  a  palette 
and  then  sitting  on  his  canvas.  People  were  so  used  to  the  old 
academic  way  of  looking  at  things  that  it  was  hard  for  them  to 
understand  the  new  way.  And,  of  course,  the  violent  impression- 
ists helped  to  keep  back  the  movement.  There's  nothing  in  the 
world  easier  than  to  make  a  bad  impressionist  picture,  but  to 
make  a  good  impressionist  picture,  to  put  on  the  colors  so  that 
they  shall  vibrate  and  harmonize  and  at  the  same  time  express 
"harmony  of  design,  is  a  feat.  Every  good  impressionist  picture 
ought  to  make  you  feel  that  it  has  atmospheric  envelopment,  that 
there  is  the  suggestion  of  a  veil  about  it.  And  no  picture  can  be 
great  without  making  you  feel  that  it  has  tone.  Whistler  is  quite 
right  in  repeatedly  suggesting  that  there  is  a  direct  relation  be- 
tween painting  and  music.  You  often  hear  artists  say  of  a  good 
picture,  'You  could  almost  play  it  on  the  piano'." 

Among  the  Swedish  paintings  that  we  next  saw  not  one  failed 
to  meet  this  kind  of  test.  Sometimes  the  suggestions  were  of  very 
heavy  music,  sometimes  of  milder  strain.  Another  of  those  great 
women  painters  astonished  me  by  the  vigor  of  her  work — Anna 
Wrangel.  Then  there  were  fine  studies  of  peasant  types,  interest- 
ing and  subtle  characterizations  by  Mas.  Olle,  which  I  liked  far 
better  than  his  striking  portrait  of  "His  Majesty  King  Gustave  V." 
Then  there  was  the  wonderful  painting  of  Bruno  Liljepors,  four 
great  canvases— "Swans,"  "Wild  Geese,"  "Sea  Eagles"! and  "Sea 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  29 

Gull  at  the  Nest."  "There's  mastery,"  said  the  painter.  "What  a 
superb  imagination  he  has.  And  what  vigor  and  sweep  of  line,  and 
what  harmony  of  color.  He's  not  one  of  those  men  that  shut  them- 
selves up  in  their  studios  and  paint  like  galley  slaves  from  tran- 
sient impressions.  He's  a  hunter  and  sportsman,  and  he  knows  his 
subjects  well.  Among  other  things  he  knows  that  nature  protects 
birds  by  making  them  take  on  the  colors  of  their  surroundings. 
All  his  work  shows  that  he  is  a  fine  student  of  natural  history. 
Whistler  would  take  the  greatest  delight  in  these  canvases.  True 
as  they  are  to  life,  they  are  essentially  decorative.  And  yet  they 
give  you  the  feeling  of  all  outdoors." 


THE  FRENCH  SECTION 

IX 

UR  interest  in  impressionism  led  us  to  the 
French  section.  Here  the  painter  called  my  at- 
tention to  two  small  canvases  by  Edmond 
Aman-Jean — "Woman  With  a  Carnation"  and 
"Portrait  of  a  Woman."  "Some  people  like  to 
say  that  the  modern  Frenchmen  are  too  realis- 
tic in  their  painting,"  he  said.  "But  no  such 
charge  can  be  made  against  Aman-Jean.  Each 
of  these  portraits  expresses  a  very  sensitive 
and  poetic  nature.  Of  the  two,  the  'Portrait  of  a  Woman'  seems 
to  me  to  be  the  lovelier  simply  because  the  quality  of  the  pastel 
adds  to  the  beauty.  The  other  portrait,  however,  in  oil,  is  superbly 
done.  This  man  has  every  quality  that  goes  with  the  making  of  a 
great  modern  painter.  He  shows  that  he  has  an  instinctive  appre- 
ciation of  beauty  of  type.  He  presents  his  subjects  in  a  very  deco- 
rative way,  with  charm  and  warmth  of  coloring.  He  infuses 
warmth  even  into  the  color  of  his  shadows.  Whistler  could  have 
admired  these  two  studies.  They  have  something  of  the  workman- 
ship that  made  his  painting  so  distinguished.  Till  one  catches  the 
beauty  that  lies  in  the  happy  juxtaposition  of  colors  it  is  impos- 
sible to  understand  what  the  big  men  of  today,  the  poets  of  the 
brush,  are  trying  to  do." 


What  the  big  men  are  not  trying  to  do  we  saw  in  Henri  For- 
eau's  story-telling  painting,  "In  the  Village,  Burial  of  a  French 


30  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Soldier."  "It's  just  the  kind  of  picture  that  Whistler  would  have 
hated — the  sentiment  is  so  obvious  and  cheap.  To  heighten  the  pa- 
thos Foreau  made  the  day  rainy.  He  wants  us  to  see  that  even  the 
heavens  weep  over  this  sad  event.  It's  like  crude  acting.  Whatever 
may  be  said  about  the  new  methods  of  painting,  there's  no  doubt 
that  it  makes  a  much  more  subtle  appeal  than  the  old  method, 
though  there  are,  of  course,  those  who  say  we  are  merely  return- 
ing to  what  some  of  the  earlier  men  undertook  to  do,  the  men 
who  saw  in  color  and  design  the  chief  purpose  of  painting  and 
who  refused  to  make  it  the  servant  of  anecdote." 

In  the  single  canvas  of  George  Maury  the  painter  found  one 
of  the  gems  of  this  collection,  "Shellfish."  It  gave  him  a  theme  for 
a  discourse  on  the  subject  of  nudity.  "This  canvas  might  be  taken 
as  an  example  of  an  absolutely  clean  and  healthy  treatment  of  the 
nude.  What  could  be  purer  than  the  presentation  of  those  girlish 
figures?  You  can  see  at  once  that  the  attitude  of  the  artist  toward 
those  lovely  young  bodies  is  very  like  the  attitude  that  might  be 
taken  by  their  mother.  He  works  in  the  spirit  that  inspired  Mrs. 
Burroughs  when  she  made  the  central  figure  in  her  'Fountain  of 
Youth,'  in  one  of  the  two  niches  under  the  Tower  of  Jewels.  Each 
of  these  forms  is  characteristically  drawn,  and  the  light,  pearly 
tones  of  the  flesh  seem  to  carry  on  the  color  of  the  shells  that  the 
girls  hold  in  their  hands.  The  shells  may  be  said  to  give  the  motif. 
The  modeling  is  wonderfully  fine,  with  an  effect  of  plasticity  that 
suggests  ease  of  workmanship,  as  if  the  painter  had  completely 
lost  himself  in  his  task.  The  group  is  beautifully  enveloped  and 
seems  to  blend  into  the  atmosphere. 

With  this  masterpiece  in  our  minds  it  was  almost  startling  to 
come  upon  another  nude,  by  Albert  Besnard — "Woman  Sleeping." 
On  the  ground  lay  a  very  highly  developed  figure,  bathed  in  light 
and  shadow,  one  of  the  breasts  looking  as  if  it  presented  a  bleed- 
ing wound.  "This  kind  of  nude  the  public  doesn't  care  for,"  I  said. 
"Some  people  it  even  makes  a  little  sick.  They  wonder  why  a 
painter  could  take  so  gross  a  type  and  present  it,  nude,  in  sur- 
roundings that  are  so  incongruous." 

"And  yet  it's  magnificently  done,"  said  the  painter,  eyeing  the 
canvas  as  if  it  were  a  luscious  peach.  "Only  a  great  master  could 
have  painted  it  in  just  that  way.  In  every  detail  it  shows  virile 
strength.  It's  a  hard  task  to  keep  the  tones  light  and  to  get  the 
rotundity  of  the  figure  as  Besnard  has  done  here.  Compare  it  with 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  31 

the  smooth,  insipid  nude  by  Mercie,  over  here — "The  Awaken- 
ing"— and  you  will  see  the  difference.  That  kind  of  nude,  unfortu- 
nately, is  admired  by  the  public.  Besnard  is  generally  recognized 
as  one  of  the  best  of  the  modern  men.  He's  the  president  of  the 
French  Academy  at  Rome.  In  the  annex  there  are  some  of  the  big 
canvases  that  he  painted  on  the  Ganges.  But  the  two  canvases 
that  are  here  are  very  interesting  from  the  technical  point  of 
view." 

As  we  stood  before  the  second  of  the  Besnards,  "The  Gypsy," 
the  painter  indicated  the  skill  shown  in  the  characterizing  of  the 
type  and  in  the  use  of  color.  The  combination  of  green  and  crim- 
son might  have  been  harsh  if  the  crimson  had  been  kept  solid, 
instead  of  being  softened  by  merging  into  milder  tones.  For  all  his 
daring  Besnard  knew  just  how  far  to  go  with  his  color  schemes. 

One  modest  canvas  moved  the  painter  to  enthusiasm,  "A  Hill- 
side in  the  Jura,"  by  Auguste  Emanuel  Pointelin.  He  called  it  "the 
great  thing  here,"  and  he  expatiated  on  the  simplicity  and  the 
depth  of  feeling  in  the  treatment.  "To  think  that  it  should  have 
been  done  by  a  man  who  was  a  distinguished  teacher  of  mathe- 
matics and  who  made  painting  his  pastime.  You  would  expect  to 
find  the  characteristics  of  the  mathematician.  But  you  find  noth- 
ing of  the  sort.  The  vastness  and  the  loneliness  of  the  country, 
instead  of  being  mathematically  indicated  are  conveyed  by  sug- 
gestion. It  is  as  if  two  kinds  of  men  lived  in  Pointelin,  each  con- 
tradicting the  other,  the  scientist  and  the  artist." 

We  lingered  before  the  fine  work  of  Lucien  Simon,  Menard,  Le 
Sidaner,  Rafaelli,  and  before  a  characteristic  Claude  Monet.  When 
we  stood  in  front  of  the  two  canvases  by  Henri  Martin  it  seemed 
as  if  we  had  reached  the  extreme  point  of  impressionism.  "The 
Lovers"  fairly  glowed  with  sunshine.  Even  the  shadows  conveyed 
the  sense  of  heat.  And  the  figures,  what  vitality  they  had  and 
what  character!  Martin's  portrait  of  himself,  as  anyone  could  see, 
was  a  master  work.  But  to  get  the  full  effect  one  had  to  view  it 
from  a  distance,  with  the  eyes  taking  their  place  in  that  vigorous- 
ly indicated  face  and  the  landscape  behind  fairly  shimmering.  I 
could  agree  with  the  painter's  comment:  "Now  you  see  impres- 
sionism at  its  best,  vibrating  with  life  and  color." 

One  piece  of  sculpture  fascinated  my  companion,  Rodin's  bust 
of  Falguiere,  the  painter  and  sculptor.  He  extolled  the  vigor  of 
the  surfaces.  "How  characteristic  they  are.  Rodin  did  his  best 


32  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

because  he  felt  that  he  was  working  for  a  fellow  artist  who  could 
appreciate  his  best.  He  let  himself  go,  as  Sargent  did  when  he 
painted  Joe  Jefferson,  who  was  a  good  painter  as  well  as  a  great 
actor.  This  bust  represents  the  work  he  did  after  his  statue  of 
Balzac  was  rejected  by  Paris,  and  Falguiere  was  chosen  to  do  a 
statue  in  its  place.  At  the  same  time  Falguiere  did  a  bust  of 
Rodin,  a  courteous  exchange  between  two  great  masters." 


THE  ITALIAN  SECTION 


N  ENTERING  the  Italian  section  the  painter 
and  I  found  ourselves  in  an  entirely  different 
atmosphere.  Now  there  was  no  sense  of  crowd- 
ing. There  was  quiet  and  rest.  "If  the  Italians 
had  done  nothing  else,  they  deserve  credit," 
said  the  painter,  "for  the  way  they  have  ar- 
ranged and  decorated  these  rooms.  The  collec- 
tion is  comfortably  small.  The  pictures  are 
hung  on  soft-colored  walls.  They  are  easy  to 
see.  In  this  section  one  has  the  feeling  of  repose  that  ought  to  be 
associated  with  art.  Exhibitions  are,  of  course,  unnatural  things. 
The  Japanese  have  the  right  idea  in  putting  one  beautiful  thing  in 
a  room  at  a  time,  and,  after  an  interval,  taking  it  away  and  put- 
ting something  else  in  its  place." 

As  we  looked  about  the  painter's  eye  rested  on  a  lovely  bit  of 
Venice.  "At  last  someone  has  come  along  and  painted  Venice  in 
a  new  way,"  he  exclaimed,  walking  forward  toward  the  fine  canvas 
by  Scattola,  in  delicate  grays,  greens,  purples,  pinks  and  hints  of 
blue.  "In  spite  of  all  the  colors  that  he  uses  there,  what  harmony 
he  gets!  No  one  that  I  am  familiar  with  has  ever  painted  Venice 
with  just  this  kind  of  feeling.  Scattola  has  dared  to  see  an  old  sub- 
ject with  his  own  eyes.  He  isn't  the  mere  literalist,  who  is  so  often 
the  favorite  of  the  public.  He  puts  charm  into  his  work  and  re- 
finement and  poetry." 

In  another  room  we  found  five  canvases  by  Ettore  Tito,  one  of 
Italy's  greatest  men,  curiously  varied  in  theme  and  in  style,  all 
painted  with  boldness  and  with  a  fine  sense  of  color.  Nearby  three 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  33 

other  brilliant  painters  were  represented  in  canvases  that  showed 
extraordinarily  technical  skill — Innocenti,  Carlandi  and  Bazzaro. 
"The  Italians  show  that  they  are  still  worthy  of  their  inheritance," 
the  painter  commented.  "But  how  their  painters  have  been  influ- 
enced by  France.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  France  is  easily  pre-eminent 
all  over  the  world  in  the  art  of  today.  She  is  the  source  to  which 
the  present  generation  of  painters  must  go  for  inspiration  and 
guidance." 

Another  Italian  painter  that  we  met  in  the  next  room  we  en- 
tered— Mancini — the  painter  shook  his  head  over.  "He  is  generally 
regarded  as  a  great  master,  but  if  this  work  represents  his  spirit, 
he  has  been  overrated.  He  can  paint  with  great  cleverness,  but  his 
message  here  is  unimportant  except  in  the  portrait  ~6i  the  old 
man,  'The  Antiquary.'  In  painting,  as  in  literature,  style  isn't 
enough.  One  must  have  something  to  say  that  is  worth  while." 

The  work  of  Noci  appealed  to  the  painter's  professional  sense 
for  its  extraordinary  skill.  When  I  objected  to  the  painting  of  the 
lips  in  the  portrait  of  the  Italian  actress,  Lyda  Borelli,  he  pointed 
out  to  me  the  genius  shown  in  the  arrangement,  the  power  indi- 
cated in  the  treatment  of  the  dark  tones  of  the  dress,  the  charac- 
ter in  the  pose  and  in  the  expression  of  the  face.  "Noci  has  caught 
a  very  definite  type  there,  and  made  it  live  for  us  on  the  canvas. 
As  for  the  lips,  the  chances  are  that  they  are  truthfully  done.  That 
kind  of  facial  decoration  is  often  cultivated  by  the  Continental 
women  of  the  stage." 

There  was  a  nude  by  Sambo  that  was  interesting  because  it 
showed  impressionism  run  mad.  And  yet  it  had  been  awarded  a 
silver  medal.  When  I  asked  why  so  exaggerated  and  absurd  a 
canvas  should  be  honored,  the  painter  reminded  me  that  the 
awards  had  been  made  by  judges  of  professional  skill,  who  took 
a  special  interest  in  technical  ability.  There  were  evidences  on  this 
canvas  of  very  adroit  craftsmanship.  But  the  artist  had  carried  his 
experimenting  too  far.  The  figure  looked  as  if  it  had  been  lit  up 
from  within  by  an  electric  light  The  flesh  had  great  spots,  like 
disease,  supposed  to  indicate  shadows.  To  the  layman  the  effect 
was  repulsive.  "This  picture  illustrates  the  dangers  of  specializa- 
tion. In  all  kinds  of  work  it's  hard  to  be  a  specialist  and  to  keep 
your  head  at  the  same  time.  Painters  with  a  hobby  are  a  good  deal 
like  doctors  with  a  hobby.  Instead  of  riding  it,  they  let  it  ride 
them.  The  extreme  impressionists  have  always  stood  in  the  way 


34  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

of  true  impressionism,  which  has  for  its  object  to  make  the  world 
alive  to  the  miracle  of  light." 

Beside  the  worldly  figures  on  the  walls  there  were  more  mod- 
est studies,  some  of  them  with  qualities  that  suggested  the  sim- 
plicity and  the  quiet  of  the  old  masters.  When  I  asked  the  painter 
if  he  did  not  feel  a  certain  shrillness  in  much  of  the  impressionism 
of  today,  both  the  Italian  and  the  French,  he  nodded  his  head,  and 
he  added:  "It  reflects  the  nervousness  and  the  superficiality  of  our 
modern  life.  Everything,  of  course,  depends  on  the  mind  behind 
it.  The  old  masters  had  a  depth  that  most  of  the  men  today  seem 
to  lack,  perhaps  because  they  were  more  spiritual.  But  in  a  man 
like  Cambon  we  find  that  modern  Italy  can  produce  work  of  deep 
feeling  and  fineness.  His  'Maternity'  is  one  of  the  most  appealing 
of  all  the  canvases  here  on  account  of  the  sincere  treatment  of  the 
mother  and  child  and  the  beauty  of  the  color  scheme.  Cadorin,  in 
his  'Portrait  of  an  Artist,'  gives  us  the  study  of  a  sculptor  at  work 
that  makes  us  feel  the  self-forgetfulness  and  the  devotion  of  a 
man  who  loses  himself  in  his  theme.  The  absorption  of  the  sculp- 
tor somehow  expresses  the  absorption  of  the  painter  in  the  ren- 
dering, the  abandonment  that  always  characterizes  the  best  art." 

The  sincerity  of  the  Italian  sculptors  we  found  indicated  in 
several  pieces  of  work,  particularly  in  those  where  children  were 
among  the  figures.  But,  so  far  as  the  public  was  concerned,  there 
was  one  piece  of  statuary  of  transcendent  interest,  "Thy  Neigh- 
bor," or  "Proximus  Tuus,"  by  D'Orsi.  "It's  curious,"  the  painter 
remarked,  with  regret  in  his  tone,  "the  way  the  people  flock  around 
this  work.  There's  nothing  in  the  whole  gallery  that  has  attracted 
so  much  attention.  It  unquestionably  has  some  good  qualities.  It 
is  executed  with  strength,  but  it  is  cheaply  realistic  and  theatrical. 
One  doesn't  catch  the  feeling  and  the  imagination  behind  it  that 
makes  'The  Man  with  the  Hoe'  so  fine.  It's  obviously  an  echo'  of 
Millet.  So  it  lacks  originality.  Then,  too,  the  man  is  not  a  type.  He 
is  an  individual,  sickly  and  apparently  half-witted.  He  isn't  made 
to  seem  like  an  expression  of  debasing  economic  conditions.  He's 
not  much  more  than  a  freak.  And  as  for  the  detail  that  is  so  gen- 
erally admired — the  hob-nailed  shoes,  the  buttons  on  the  coat  and 
the  protruding  ribs — they  are  not  evidences  of  great  skill.  They 
merely  show  that  the  sculptor  likes  the  photographic  method, 
which,  instead  of  emphasizing  the  spirit  of  his  work,  introduces 
distracting  elements." 


THE  WOMEN  PAINTERS'  ROOM 

XI 

HEN  we  went  into  gallery  65  we  found  ourselves 
in  a  room  where  the  canvases  consisted  wholly 
of  work  done  by  women.  "There  are  some  well- 
known  names  here,"  said  the  painter.  "They  in- 
clude Mary  Cassatt,  Cecilia  Beaux,  Mary  Curtis 
Richardson,  Jean  McLane,  Ellen  Emmet  Rand, 
Anne  Bremer,  Violet  Oakley  and  Betty  de 
Jong.  The  room  shows  that  women  are  doing 
fine  work  in  this  country.  It  is  a  strong  argu- 
ment in  favor  of  feminism." 

The  painter  turned  to  the  canvases  by  Mary  Cassatt.  "Here  is 
one  of  the  greatest  women  painters  in  the  country,  in  fact,  one  of 
the  greatest  in  the  world.  She  is  related  to  the  earlier  days  of  the 
impressionist  movement,  when  her  master,  Degas,  was  associated 
with  Monet  and  Manet  and  the  other  leaders  of  the  new  school. 
She  and  Berthe  Morisot  are  the  two  most  conspicuous  women  in 
the  movement.  Though  her  work  bears  a  certain  resemblance  in 
style  to  Degas,  it  has  individuality  of  its  own.  She  isn't  merely 
clever;  she  has  distinction  and  depth,  what  we  painters  like  to  call 
quality,  something  that  can't  be  cultivated,  that  has  to  come  out 
of  the  nature  of  the  artist.  Of  all  her  pictures  here  I  like  best  'The 
Woman  with  the  Fan.'  It  could  have  been  done  only  by  a  painter 
of  extraordinary  gifts." 

From  Mary  Cassatt  we  turned  to  Cecilia  Beaux.  "These  por- 
traits," said  the  painter,  "seem  to  me  to  be  as  clever  as  Sargent's 
in  their  freedom  and  directness  and  in  the  way  the  paint  is  put  on. 
'A  New  England  Woman'  is  the  adroit  handling  of  a  difficult 
scheme  on  account  of  the  lightness  in  tone.  There  is  wonderful 
character  in  the  face,  too.  The  study  of  the  child  with  her  nurse 
shows  great  brilliancy,  both  in  the  handling  and  in  the  arrange- 
ment." 

When  I  objected  to  the  cutting  oft7  of  the  upper  part  of  the 
figure  of  the  nurse,  the  painter  smiled.  "It  strikes  me,"  he  said, 
"that  you  are  introducing  economic  and  social  ideas  into  art  criti- 
cism now.  I  don't  think  that  the  painter  intended  to  be  snobbish 
in  treating  the  nurse  so  ruthlessly.  She  merely  meant  to  use  a 
novel  scheme,  and  I  think  she  succeeded,  though  the  presenting 


36  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

of  only  a  part  of  the  figure  in  the  canvas  is  by  no  means  without 
precedent.  This  scheme  makes  the  dress  of  the  nurse  a  pretty 
background  for  the  figure  of  the  little  girl,  and  carries  a  very 
natural  and  attractive  suggestion." 

In  Mary  Curtis  Richardson  we  found  an  artist  long  known  as 
one  of  the  ablest  of  San  Francisco  portrait-painters.  "The  Young 
Mother"  was  one  of  the  most  appealing  of  all  the  canvases  in  the 
room — the  mother,  simply  and  beautifully  dressed,  reclining  on  a 
couch  with  her  young  baby.  The  color  scheme  charmed  the  paint- 
er on  account  of  its  delicacy  and  harmony.  "Mrs.  Richardson 
paints  women  and  children  mainly,"  he  said,  "and  she  can  be  re- 
lied on  for  good  color  and  drawing.  It's  hard  to  draw  babies  and 
make  them  look  right.  This  baby  is  absolutely  true  to  life.  How 
simple  the  composition  is,  and  yet  how  effective.  And  the  rich 
golden  tone  of  the  canvas  is  in  exactly  the  right  key.  The  bowl  of 
gold  fish  in  the  background  blends  in  with  fine  skill." 

In  "The  Dancing  Girl,"  by  Betty  de  Jong,  the  painter  found 
what  he  regarded  as  an  excellent  example  of  broad  and  direct 
painting.  "Miss  de  Jong  is  a  French  girl,  who  recently  came  to  live 
here  in  San  Francisco.  Though  she  is  very  petite  and  feminine, 
she  paints  like  a  vigorous  man.  In  her  technique  she  is  very  ad- 
vanced. Observe  how  in  this  canvas  she  gets  down  to  the  essen- 
tials, and  how  subtley  she  indicates  the  graduations  of  tone.  It's 
curious,"  the  painter  went  on,  "the  way  people  express  themselves 
in  art.  You  will  find  delicate  looking  people  painting  as  if  they  were 
towers  of  strength,  and  other  people  of  great  vigor,  some  of  them 
men  of  big  physical  frame,  who  paint  in  ways  that  are  absurdly 
weak  and  effeminate." 

In  Anne  Bremer  we  found  another  woman  who  painted  like  a 
man.  Ellen  Emmet  Rand,  too,  had  a  strength  and  simplicity  in 
dealing  with  her  portraits.  Her  study  of  William  James  was  a 
masterpiece  of  sympathetic  divination.  She  had  caught  him  just 
as  those  who  knew  him  well  saw  him  in  everyday  life,  and  she 
had  expressed  his  earnestness  and  his  kindliness.  The  pose  could 
not  have  been  more  characteristically  or  happily  chosen.  "Women 
ought  to  be  good  portrait  painters  on  account  of  their  insight," 
the  painter  remarked.  "There  are  many  women  who  are  positively 
uncanny  in  their  ability,  not  only  to  observe  others,  but  to  fell 
others,  to  get  at  qualities  more  subtle  than  those  that  can  be  taken 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS 


37 


in  merely  by  the  eye.  In  my  opinion,  as  women  are  more  and  more 
encouraged  to  go  into  portrait  work,  we  shall  develop  among  them 
some  very  great  technicians." 

Violet  Oakley's  portrait  of  a  very  striking-looking  lady  in  mid- 
dle life  would  have  attracted  us  for  the  boldness  of  its  execution 
and  for  the  charm  of  its  coloring,  even  if  it  had  not  borne  the  title 
of  "The  Tragic  Muse."  We  agreed  that  we  could  not  find  any- 
thing particularly  tragic  in  the  face.  Perhaps,  after  all,  the  title 
was  an  after-thought,  a  concession  to  popular  interest.  "There's  a 
growing  feeling  among  artists  that  titles  are  a  nuisance.  So  often 
they  introduce  a  distracting  element.  Ideally  a  picture  ought  to 
explain  itself  without  the  aid  of  literary  interpretation.  Now,  this 
canvas  bears  in  its  execution  the  impress  of  ability  and  force  in 
dealing  with  a  most  interesting  subject." 

There  were  many  other  canvases  that  held  our  attention,  too 
numerous  to  be  discussed  in  detail.  Incidentally  they  reminded  us 
that  throughout  their  galleries  the  women  painters  had  made  a 
fine  showing.  It  was  a  happy  thought,  nevertheless,  to  place  this 
emphasis  on  what  American  women  were  doing  in  art,  and  what 
they  promised  to  do  during  the  next  few  years,  which  were  un- 
doubtedly destined  to  be  full  of  changes  and  surprises.  "We  don't 
know  much  about  the  artistic  capabilities  of  women  yet,"  said  the 
painter,  "for  the  simple  reason  that  they  haven't  had  a  fair  chance." 


THE  JAPANESE  SECTION 

XII 


HE  Japanese  gentleman  we  met  as  we  entered 
the  Japanese  section  explained  to  us  that  there 
was  a  false  impression  abroad  in  regard  to  the 
modern  art  work  of  his  country.  "Our  artists," 
he  said,  "do  not  imitate  European  work  to  any 
great  extent.  It  is  true  that  some  of  them,  who 
have  studied  in  Paris,  and  some  of  them  who 
have  studied  European  methods  at  home,  do 
follow  the  European  technique.  But  most  of  our 
painters  remain  Japanese  in  spirit  and  in  method.  At  the  same 
time  they  are  always  striving  for  originality.  The  policy  of  the 


38  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

great  Kyoto  school  of  art  is  to  encourage  each  student  to  express 
himself.  After  all,  art  is  essentially  the  expression  of  ideas,  and 
the  more  original  a  painter  is  the  more  interesting  he  is  sure  to 

DC* 

In  number  nine  our  friend  found  an  illustration  of  his  point, 
"Spring  Time  in  the  Palace  Garden,"  by  Banri  Mitsui,  of  Tokyo. 
"This  painting  is  unlike  the  old  Japanese  style  and  yet,  you  see, 
it  is  essentially  Japanese  in  feeling  and  treatment.  By  the  way, 
these  large  pictures  of  ours  represent  a  new  movement.  But  our 
artists  follow  the  traditional  shapes.  Their  originality  they  show 
mainly  in  subject  and  in  technique.  Here,  instead  of  introducing 
young  girls  to  express  the  spirit  of  spring,  its  lovely  buoyancy, 
the  artist  uses  a  group  of  men,  of  varying  ages,  some  of  them  in 
middle  life,  some  of  them  old.  And,  instead  of  using  wild  flowers 
for  the  background,  he  uses  pine  trees.  To  the  left  we  find  only 
a  few  petals  to  suggest  the  spring  flowers.  And  to  the  right  we 
have  a  hint  of  the  branch  of  a  cherry  tree." 

What  I  liked  most  about  .this  picture  was  the  richness  of  the 
coloring  and  the  characterization  of  the  figures,  in  their  brilliant 
dress,  each  type  finely  delineated.  What  the  painter  liked  was  the 
vigor  of  the  technique,  which  caused  the  Japanese  gentleman  to 
discourse  on  the  subject  of  originality. 

So  great  was  the  regard  for  originality  in  art,  we  were  told, 
that  the  directors  of  the  exhibitions  in  Japan  did  not  accept  work 
unless  it  showed  something  new  in  technique.  Permeating  all  the 
Japanese  work  was  the  spirit  of  artistic  adventure,  revealing  a 
love  for  the  overcoming  of  difficulties,  for  the  harmonizing  of  ele- 
ments seemingly  inharmonious.  Unless  this  spirit  was  appreciated, 
Japanese  art  could  not  be  understood.  Those  two  splendidly  dec- 
orative paintings  given  one  number,  "Mulberry  and  Cocoon," 
by  Hpko  Murakami,  of  Tpkio,  suggested  how  strongly  the  decora- 
tive influence  revealed  itself  in  the  modern  work.  One  panel 
showed  young  girls  among  the  mulberry  leaves,  and  delicately  in- 
dicated the  feeling  of  spring.  The  other  panel,  representing  au- 
tumn, though  gay  in  spirit,  nevertheless  subtly  conveyed  a  sense 
of  the  waning  season,  the  decline  of  life. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  of  the  modern  panels,  "Summer 
Midday,  by  Toyen  Oka,  of  Kyoto,  proved  to  be  the  work  of  a 
young  artist  evidently  imbued  with  the  intense  love  of  natural 
effects,  of  truthful  rendering,  that  inspired  the  impressionist  move- 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  39 

ment.  Against  a  gray,  wooden  fence  stood  a  lovely  bush,  cov- 
ered with  flowers.  On  the  fence,  in  the  upper  right-hand  corner, 
sat  a  thin,  yellow-eyed  cat,  the  blackness  of  whose  fur  harmonized 
with  the  blackness  of  the  rock  at  the  base  of  the  composition. 

The  composition  inspired  our  friend  to  explain  the  way  it  hap- 
pened to  be  painted: 

"One  fearfully  hot  day  Oka  was  looking  out  of  his  window,  and 
he  saw  that  beautiful  oleander  bush,  the  only  fresh  looking  thing 
within  sight.  He  was  so  struck  by  it  that  he  started  in  to  paint  it 
at  once.  And  how  perfectly  he  has  caught  the  feeling  of  the  scene. 
He  even  makes  the  spectator  feel  the  heat.  The  appearance  of  the 
cat  suggests  that  it  is  suffering  from  the  heat,  both  in  the  pose  of 
the  body  and  the  narrowness  of  the  eyes." 

"You  see,  the  painter  commented,  "the  spirit  of  the  impres- 
sionists isn't  confined  to  Europe  and  the  United  States." 

In  the  work  of  Shodo  Hirata,  of  Tokio — "Voices  of  Little 
Birds" — it  seemed  to  me  that  the  poetry  in  the  art  of  the  Japanese 
found  a  beautiful  illustration.  The  two  panels  that  were  included 
there  represented  forest  scenes.  They  had  been  inspired  by  the 
decorative  sense  of  the  interpreter.  "One  day  the  artist  happened 
to  walk  through  the  deep  forest.  He  was  struck  by  the  beauty  in  the 
design  of  the  boughs  and  of  the  leaves,  and  by  the  richness  of  the 
coloring.  But,  of  course,  he  felt  the  need  of  simplifying  in  order 
to  convey  his  impression  in  a  decorative  way.  In  one  panel  he 
uses  massive  trees,  and  he  conveys  the  charm  of  their  soft  brown 
bark  and  of  the  rich  coloring  of  the  wild  grapevine,  with  its  red 
leaves.  In  the  other  panel  see  how  exquisitely  he  has  suggested 
the  lines  of  the  silver  birch  trees.  The  little  birds  that  are  singing 
there  are  directly  related  to  those  trees.  To  the  Japanese  observer 
the  trees  carry  out  the  suggestion  of  the  silvery  bird-notes." 

So  delicately  were  those  panels  painted  that  I  was  curious  to 
know  the  kind  of  material  the  Japanese  artist  used.  I  was  in- 
formed that,  though  they  sometimes  painted  on  paper,  they  usual- 
ly preferred  silk.  The  oldest  painting  in  Japan  dated  back  twelve 
hundred  years.  In  those  days  the  artists  painted  on  cloth  mainly. 
Sometimes  they  used  fiber.  Even  today  all  the  Buddhistic  paint- 
ings were  found  to  be  on  fibers  woven  into  cloth.  Japan  was  proud 
of  possessing  the  oldest  museum  in  the  world,  containing  the  col- 
lection of  the  Emperor  Shomu,  of  Japanese,  Indian  and  Chinese 
works  of  art,  made  twelve  hundred  years  ago  and  kept  intact,  the 


40  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Shospin  in  Nara,  at  some  distance  from  Kyoto.  Some  of  the  work 
was  in  a  wonderful  state  of  preservation.  The  old  painters  made 
their  own  paint,  an  art  in  itself,  and  they  made  paints  that  didn't 
fade.  Today,  in  the  struggle  for  originality,  the  painters  were  con- 
tinually seeking  for  new  colors. 

As  we  moved  from  painting  to  painting,  and  as  we  expressed 
admiration  for  the  delicacy  of  the  coloring  and  the  technical  skill 
everywhere  displayed,  we  were  informed  that  the  old  school  in 
Japan  emphasized  the  importance  of  brush  work.  The  best  workers 
learned  to  portray  texture,  movement,  even  graduation  of  colors 
by  a  single  stroke  of  the  brush.  But  technical  skill  alone  did  not 
explain  the  full  beauty  of  these  scenes.  It  could  have  been 
achieved  only  by  a  civilization  that  developed  a  fine  sensibility 
and  a  reverential  attitude  toward  nature.  When  I  spoke  of  the 
absence  of  nudes  my  words  were  received  with  this  significant 
comment:  "In  our  daily  life  in  Japan  we  are  more  frank  about 
the  human  body  than  the  Europeans  and  the  Americans.  But  in 
our  art  we  have  not  encouraged  nudity  as  a  theme." 

"After  all,"  the  painter  remarked,  "the  nude  in  art  is  a  very 
elastic  term.  Often  it  means  the  crude  and  the  rude.  It  all  de- 
pends on  the  imagination  of  the  artist." 

"People  sometimes  carelessly  speak  of  the  art  of  Japan,"  said 
the  Japanese  gentleman,  "as  if  it  were  quite  different  from  the 
art  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  But  there  is  a  decided  relation 
to  be  traced  here,  not  only  to  the  art  of  the  other  parts  of  the 
East,  but  to  the  art  of  the  West  as  well.  As  your  own  John  La 
Farge  pointed  out  some  years  ago,  modern  discoveries  by  the 
archaeologists  show  a  plain  connection  between  the  East  and  the 
West.  China,  for  example,  was  undoubtedly  influenced  by  Greece. 
And  Japan  was  strongly  influenced  by  China.  Besides  reaching 
Japan  through  China,  Greece  reached  Japan  through  India  and 
Korea.  The  early  Japanese  art-workers  felt  very  strongly  the 
Korean  influence.  La  Farge  was  very  much  disturbed  over  the 
possible  damage  to  Japanese  art  and  the  feeling  for  art  through 
the  modern  European  influence.  What  he  feared  most  of  all  was 
that  among  the  Japanese  of  the  coming  generations,  trained  to  take 
the  European  point  of  view,  their  own  art  might  disappear,  with 
its  fine  sense  of  harmony  and  color  and  tone  preserved  down  the 
ages.  He  believed,  however,  that  there  was  much  in  the  best 
European  art  that  our  people  might  profit  by,  mainly  because  it 
was  so  like  our  own.  For  example,  he  pointed  out  that  the  best 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  41 

work  of  the  early  Italians  bore  a  striking  resemblance  to  our 
great  Buddhistic  paintings.  He  also  showed  that  those  colored 
prints  of  ours  that  treated  everyday  subjects  dealt  with  the  very 
problems  of  light  and  color  that  the  Europeans  had  been  working 
at  for  the  last  two  hundred  and  fifty  years. 

Even  to  one  who  looked  at  the  display  here  from  the  outside 
point  of  view  it  was  plain  enough  that  there  was  a  great  human 
history  behind  it,  expressing  the  activity  of  an  exceedingly  alert 
and  sensitive  people.  The  very  multiplicity  of  the  schools  suggested 
the  constant  reaching  out  to  new  ideas.  And  yet  there  was  won- 
derful simplicity  here.  One  of  the  paintings,  "Masatsura  Ku- 
sunoki  Rescuing  His  Foes,"  by  Tomoto  Kobori,  of  Tokyo,  at- 
tracted us  by  the  large  number  of  figures  used,  in  resplendent 
costumes,  by  the  vigor  of  the  action,  and  by  the  variety  and  the 
charm  of  the  design.  It  was  one  of  the  few  frankly  story-telling 
pictures  in  the  whole  collection.  It  celebrated  the  magnanimity  of 
the  great  Japanese  patriot  of  several  years  ago,  who,  after  nobly 
defending  his  emperor  and  vanquishing  his  foes  on  the  river, 
rushed  to  their  aid  as  they  were  drowning  and  brought  many  of 
them  safely  to  shore,  converting  them  to  friends  and  adherents. 

If  the  Japanese  did  not  care  for  story-telling  pictures,  they 
loved  work  that  carried  a  poetic  suggestiveness,  he  said,  and 
they  loved  artistic  economy  in  treatment.  If  the  material  that  they 
painted  on  served  their  purpose  in  carrying  out  a  scene  they 
would  leave  it  frankly  bare.  Throughout  their  work  one  could 
catch  betrayals  of  their  philosophical  attitude  toward  nature  and 
life.  A  certain  whimsical  quality  expressed  itself  by  giving  a  trivial 
expression  to  what  was  serious  and  a  serious  expression  to  what 
was  trivial.  But  the  poetic  and  decorative  interpretation  of  nature 
was  what  the  Japanese  artists  cared  for  most  deeply.  In  "The 
Woodman,"  Vunto  Hayashi,  of  Kyoto,  had  evidently  been  struck 
by  the  meaning  of  the  work  done  in  the  heart  of  the  mountains, 
far  from  the  great  haunts  of  men,  by  a  few  faithful  workers,  who 
cut  down  the  saplings  for  human  use.  In  another  Kashu  Kikuchi 
had  presented  the  figure  of  a  woman  in  the  decline  of  life,  using 
scarlet  maple  leaves  to  suggest  her  age.  When  I  expressed  sur- 
prise at  this  kind  of  artistic  frankness,  our  companion  explained 
to  us  that,  on  the  subject  of  age,  the  Japanese  women  were  not 
as  sensitive  as  the  women  of  Europe  and  America.  They  were  very 
careful  to  dress  according  to  their  age.  Besides,  was  there  not 


42  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

something  very  beautiful  in  the  decay  of  leaves?  Surely  those 
maple  trees,  suggested  in  this  picture,  were  never  so  gorgeous  as 
when  they  were  arrayed  in  the  hues  of  autumn. 

My  interest  in  "Entr'acte,"  by  a  woman  painter,  described  in 
the  catalogue  as  Mrs.  Shoyen  Ikeda,  of  Tokyo,  representing  a  Jap- 
anese lady  sitting  in  her  box  at  the  theatre,  between  the  acts, 
brought  out  the  information  that  for  many  generations  there  had 
been  distinguished  women  painters  and  women  writers  in  Japan. 
In  them  the  Japanese  took  a  special  pride.  Some  of  them  had  won 
the  distinction  of  becoming  Imperial  painters,  associated  with  the 
court. 

Though  the  collection  in  these  rooms  was  by  no  means  large, 
I  found  that  it  required  a  great  deal  of  time  for  appreciation.  The 
truth  was  that  everything  had  been  carefully  selected  and  every- 
thing was  interesting.  The  silk-embroidered  screen,  depicting  a 
lion  and  a  lioness,  was  marvelously  beautiful,  both  in  the  treat- 
ment of  the  design  and  in  the  coloring.  The  Kyoto  embroiderers, 
Yozo  Nagara  and  Kiyoshi  Hashio,  had  achieved  colors  here  that 
could  not  have  been  reached  in  water  color  or  in  oil.  Even  the 
frame  was  interesting  with  its  decorative  use  of  a  sea-weed  motive. 

Then  there  was  the  metal  work  and  the  lacquer  wares,  the  pot- 
tery, porcelain  and  cloisonne,  the  dyed  fabrics  and  the  prints  and 
designs,  all  finely  executed.  "A  Devil,"  by  Chozabura  Yamada,  of 
Ishikawa,  a  grotesque  figure  in  hammered  iron,  was,  by  special 
permission,  taken  out  so  that  we  might  make  an  examination  of  it. 
Though  it  looked  as  if  it  might  weigh  a  good  many  pounds,  it 
proved  to  be  as  light  as  a  feather.  We  were  informed  that  only  one 
man  in  Japan  could  do  this  work.  He  belonged  to  an  ancient  fam- 
ily of  armorers,  and  had  given  up  armor  making  to  hammer  fig- 
ures of  this  kind,  as  thin  as  paper,  made  by  thousands  of  delicate 
strokes,  outside  and  inside.  "He  has  hammered  his  whole  person- 
ality in  that  piece,"  said  the  painter,  his  eyes  shining  with  the 
delight  of  a  connoisseur. 

In  the  sculpture  we  found  much  ingenious  and  original  work 
in  wood,  ivory,  bronze  and  plaster.  Homei  Yoshida,  of  Tokyo,  had 
done  a  beautiful  ivory  group,  full  of  character,  "Old  Man  and  His 
Pet  Rabbit."  The  theme  was  a  very  moving  study  in  plaster.  "The 
Strike,"  by  Osao  Watonobe,  of  Tokyo,  the  workman  with  his  wife 
and  children,  helpless,  suffering,  on  the  verge  of  despair  a  master- 
piece of  realism." 


IN  THE  CHINESE  SECTION 


XIII 

HILE  we  were  entering  the  Chinese  section, 
the  painter  remarked:  "When  people  come  into 
these  rooms,  they  are  likely  to  be  disappointed. 
The  reason  is  that  they  judge  Chinese  art  by 
their  own  standards  of  today,  instead  of  judg- 
ing it  by  the  Chinese  standards  of  the  past. 
They  look  about  for  evidences  of  the  modern 
spirit  and  they  find  none.  And  yet,  when  they 
are  in  the  Japanese  section,  these  very  people 
may  be  among  the  first  to  deplore  the  tendency  shown  by  some 
Japanese  painters  to  take  on  the  current  European  methods. 
There  are  paintings  in  this  exhibition  by  Japanese  artists  that 
might  have  come  from  the  French  impressionists.  The  trouble 
with  the  Japanese  is  that  they  are  too  ready  to  be  influenced. 
They  have  a  wonderful  imitative  faculty.  It  may  be  a  means  by 
which,  in  future,  they  will  develop  towards  the  creating  of  abso- 
lutely new  art  forms.  On  the  other  hand,  it  may  weaken  their  in- 
dividuality and  ultimately  cause  them  to  lose  it  altogether.  The 
trouble  with  the  Chinese  is  that  they  have  been  only  too  content 
to  work  in  the  old  grooves." 

"Art  in  China  has  a  glorious  history,"  said  the  painter.  "It  goes 
back  to  several  centuries  before  Christ.  But  the  work  of  the  first 
thousand  years  has  been  lost.  The  earliest  Chinese  painting  that 
we  have  in  the  Western  world  is  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  sup- 
posed to  date  from  the  fourth  or  fifth  century  after  Christ.  If  we 
could  trace  the  growth  of  artistic  expression  among  the  Chinese 
we  should  doubtless  find  periods  of  art  corresponding  with  peri- 
ods in  the  history  of  art  in  Europe.  For  instance,  from  the  seventh 
through  the  tenth  centuries  there  was  a  spiritual  awakening  among 
the  Chinese  painters  very  like  the  renaissance  that  inspired  the 
painters  of  Italy  and  Spain  and  France.  It  had  a  wonderful  effect 
on  all  the  cultivated  Chinese.  It  brought  out  an  astonishing 
amount  of  talent.  Among  men  of  distinction  in  public  life  it  be- 
came fashionable  to  cultivate  skill  in  the  arts.  In  this  way  a  body 
of  connoisseurs  was  developed  which  must  have  been  very  in- 
spiring to  the  painters.  What  artists  need  most  of  all  is  a  respon- 
sive public.  In  China  it  was  conspicuous  by  its  presence;  in  our 
country  it  is  conspicuous  by  its  absence." 


44  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

The  painter  pointed  to  the  scrolls  and  the  screens  about  us. 
"Although  they  are  distinctively  Chinese,"  he  said,  "how  strongly 
they  remind  one  of  Japanese  work.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Japan- 
ese went  to  school  in  China  when  Japan  was  a  Chinese  province. 
They  absorbed  the  principles  of  Chinese  art  and  made  them  their 
own.  The  Chinese  influence  still  persists  in  Japan.  But  the  Japan- 
ese have  succeeded  in  forging  ahead." 

"How  about  the  awakening  of  China?"  I  said.  "Hasn't  it  shown 
itself  as  yet  among  the  artists  there?" 

"If  it  has,"  the  painter  replied,  "the  change  isn't  expressed 
here.  From  this  display  one  might  fancy  that  China  was  still  the 
aristocratic  country  that  had  been  ruled  down  the  ages  by  the 
master-class,  with  emperors  and  empresses  and  all  that  goes  with 
imperialistic  show.  But  we  ought  to  remember  that  periods  of 
great  political  and  social  agitation  are  not  likely  to  encourage  art. 
The  people  are  too  absorbed.  It  is  in  periods  of  tranquility  that  art 
becomes  most  expressive.  Then  it  draws  on  those  other  periods 
for  some  of  its  best  material.  The  chances  are  that,  in  time,  the 
new  China  will  produce  new  and  able  painters  who  will  reflect  the 
radical  ideas.  Then  there  will  be  the  danger  of  corruption  from 
foreign  sources,  the  danger  that  Japan  is  now  facing." 

The  decorative  character  of  the  painting  made  an  appeal  to 
the  painter.  In  his  judgment  the  Chinese  were  among  the  earliest 
and  the  greatest  of  the  decorators.  Many  centuries  ago  they  felt 
and  worked  out  the  decorative  principles  that  were  used  with  such 
skill  by  the  men  of  today.  There  was  a  distinct  resemblance,  for 
example,  between  Chinese  decoration  and  those  magnificent  dec- 
orative designs  by  Fjaestad  in  the  Swedish  section,  generally  ac- 
cepted as  highly  advanced  and  brilliant  work. 

The  variety  of  the  work  here  we  found  particularly  interesting. 
It  included  the  minute  carving  of  fruit  stones,  designs  in  many 
kinds  of  wood,  rich  embroideries,  beautifully  cut  precious  stones 
set  in  royal  magnificence,  rare  porcelains,  superb  vases  of  clois- 
onne, exquisite  pieces  of  lacquer.  Some  of  it  seemed  trifling,  for 
example,  those  bottles  painted  from  the  inside  by  means  of  long 
brushes,  dexterously  used.  But  taken  altogether,  it  illustrated  the 
fine  artistic  sense  of  the  Chinese,  characteristic  of  their  work 
down  the  ages.  "What  I  like  best  about  it  isn't  their  great  costly 
pieces  that  belong  in  palaces,"  said  the  painter,  "but  those  more 
simple  and  inexpensive  pieces  that  show  the  direct  relation  be- 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS 


45 


tween  use  and  beauty.  Whenever  a  people  try  to  make  their  daily 
utensils  beautiful  it  offers  a  proof  of  its  instinctive  feeling  of  art." 

As  we  wandered  from  room  to  room  we  found  many  evidences 
of  this  feeling.  And  we  also  formed  expressions  of  the  poetry  in 
the  hearts  of  the  Chinese  people,  their  love  of  nature,  their  rever- 
ence, their  treasuring  of  their  legends,  their  patient  devotion  in 
striving  toward  their  artistic  ideals.  "In  some  ways,"  the  painter 
remarked,  "those  old-fashioned  fellows,  for  all  their  flatness  and 
quaintness,  are  curiously  like  our  modern  men.  For  example,  they 
never  try  to  be  photographic.  They  are  always  suggestive.  They 
appeal,  not  to  the  sight  merely,  but  to  the  imagination  and  to  the 
feelings.  They  are  poets  themselves  and  they  want  to  develop  the 
love  of  poetry  among  the  people  that  look  at  their  work." 


THE  FRENCH  PAVILION 


XIV 

F  ALL  the  buildings  on  the  grounds,"  said  the 
painter  as  we  approached  the  French  pavilion, 
"this  building  has  for  me  the  most  interesting 
associations.  It  is  astonishing  that  it  should 
have  been  undertaken  at  all.  France  was  in  the 
throes  of  the  war.  Paris  had  just  escaped  an- 
ther invasion  of  the  Germans.  In  the  midst  of 
all  this  turmoil  to  ask  the  French  people  to 
turn  their  attention  to  an  Exposition  thousands 
of  miles  away  seemed  like  an  absurdity.  But  they  saw  a  chance  of 
showing  their  appreciation  of  the  help  given  the  wounded  and  im- 
poverished by  sympathetic  Americans,  and  they  made  a  great 
effort.  Then,  too,  they  felt  the  artistic  appeal  of  the  Exposition.  In 
a  short  time  they  were  able  to  do  what,  for  most  nations,  would 
have  required  many  months  or  years  of  preparation.  They  had 
trained  exposition  men,  experts,  who  went  to  work  with  a  will 
and  made  one  of  the  most  artistic  displays  ever  seen  at  any  inter- 
national affair  of  this  kind." 


We  were  in  the  Court  of  the  Legion  of  Honor  now,  close  to 
the  great  statue  of  "The  Thinker,"  by  Rodin.  "It  was  a  fine  idea  to 


46  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

secure  this  wonderful  expression  of  modern  French  sculpture  for 
this  particular  spot.  And  it's  pleasant  to  think  that  it  has  been  se- 
cured through  the  generosity  and  the  public  spirit  of  a  San  Fran- 
cisco woman,  Mrs.  A.  B.  Spreckels.  It's  just  as  strong  as  the  orig- 
inal, which  has  stood  for  years  in  front  of  the  Pantheon  in  Paris. 
Rodin,  you  know,  when  he  has  finished  a  piece  of  work,  doesn't 
turn  away  from  it  and  let  others  make  reproductions.  Every  re- 
production he  works  on  with  as  much  care  as  he  gave  to  the 
original." 

The  building  appealed  to  the  painter,  both  for  the  distinctive 
qualities  in  the  architecture  and  for.  its  historic  associations.  "It's 
an  exact  reproduction,"  he  said,  "of  the  Palace  of  the  Legion  of 
Honor  which  stands  near  the  Quai  d'Orsay,  in  the  Rue  de  Lille,  at 
the  corner  of  the  Rue  de  Solferino.  It  was  built  in  1786  by  the 
able  but  not  highly  distinguished  architect,  Rousseau,  for  the 
Prince  of  Salm,  who  had  his  head  cut  off  during  the  French  revo- 
lution, in  1793.  Napoleon  secured  it  for  the  Legion  of  Honor  in 
1804,  when  he  was  First  Consul.  He  liked  the  idea  of  being  able  to 
see  it  from  the  Tuileries.  In  style  it  is  pure  Louis  XVI.  The  re- 
production here  is  very  exact,  even  to  the  molding  of  the  friezes. 
The  architectural  plans  were  sent  over  from  Paris  and  the  actual 
building  was  done  by  the  Director  of  Works,  Harris  H.  D.  Con- 
nick.  In  some  ways  it's  a  pity  the  materials  were  not  permanent. 
At  an  additional  cost  of  a  few  thousand  dollars  San  Francisco 
might  have  had  a  fine  structure  and  a  constant  reminder  of  the 
ancient  friendship  between  France  and  the  United  States." 

French  architecture,  as  I  knew,  had  a  special  interest  for  the 
painter,  both  on  account  of  its  beauty  and  on  account  of  the  spirit 
behind  it  and  the  history.  "In  Paris,"  he  remarked,  "it's  fasci- 
nating to  see  how  the  French  temperament  has  expressed  itself  in 
changing  styles.  The  history  of  the  French  people  is  written  all 
over  their  houses  and  their  bridges  and  their  monuments.  Napo- 
leon, however,  gets  more  credit  than  he  deserves  for  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  Empire  style,  which  is  so  closely  associated  with  mod- 
ern French  art.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  began  to  come  in  during  the 
period  of  Louis  XVI.  The  development  of  a  fashion  is  often  be- 
yond the  control  of  any  one  man,  however  great.  But  the  Empire 
style  suited  Napoleon's  temperament  on  account  of  its  close  as- 
sociation with  Rome.  In  the  days  of  the  first  French  empire,  Caesar 
and  Napoleon  were  often  compared,  and  the  comparison  must 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  47 

have  been  very  pleasing  to  Napoleon's  vanity.  The  influence  of 
Rome  on  French  architecture  is  very  strong,  but  it  has  been  sub- 
jected to  the  most  subtle  modifications  and  adaptations,  often 
hard  to  trace. 

As  we  passed  up  the  stairway  of  the  main  entrance  to  the 
pavilion,  we  both  felt  as  if  we  had  been  transported  into  France. 
"Isn't  it  marvelous  how  well  the  French  do  things?  Their  stand- 
ard is  perfection  and  they  are  always  striving  in  the  direction  of 
better  methods.  Just  to  look  about  here  is  to  realize  how  much 
thought  and  feeling  they  have  put  into  the  arrangement  of  their 
treasures.  And  how  clever  it  was  of  them  to  include  in  the  dis- 
play examples  of  their  skill  in  women's  clothes  that  has  helped 
to  make  them  leaders  in  taste  all  over  the  world.  There  are  only 
two  things  that  they  have  left  out,  their  wine  and  their  pate  de 
foie  gras." 

When  I  asked  the  painter  how  he  accounted  for  the  artistic 
eminence  of  the  French  people,  he  replied:  "There  are  many  ex- 
planations. In  the  first  place,  there  is  the  emotional  French 
temperament,  related  to  climate,  to  the  subtle  influence  of  ideals 
and  to  habits  of  thought.  When  once  a  conception  of  beauty  is 
implanted  in  the  heart  of  a  people,  it  expresses  itself  in  a  multi- 
tude of  artistic  ways.  Then,  too,  the  French  authorities  have  been 
careful  to  foster  a  love  of  art  among  the  people.  They  don't  hide 
their  treasures  away  in  vaults.  They  have  a  feeling  that  what  is 
beautiful  in  art  belongs,  in  a  sense,  to  all  the  people.  It  is  related 
to  the  old  notion  that  what  belonged  to  the  king  belonged  to  the 
people.  When  you  travel  through  France  you  are  continually  re- 
minded of  this  attitude.  The  custodians  of  great  works  are  eager 
to  have  them  appreciated  and  enjoyed.  As  a  result,  the  people 
have  learned  to  appreciate  and  they  have  also  developed  a  respon- 
sive attitude  which  makes  them  respect  such  treasures.  You  rare- 
ly hear  of  a  great  work  of  art  being  stolen  in  France  by  anyone 
of  French  blood.  The  Mona  Lisa,  for  example,  was  stolen  by  a 
foreigner." 

The  painter  pointed  to  the  magnificent  Sevres  vases  near  the 
entrance  of  the  Pavilion.  "In  France,  the  people  are  so  used  to 
seeing  work  of  that  kind  that  they  know  its  artistic  value.  Here 
people  often  pass  them  by  without  realizing.  The  connoisseurs, 
of  course,  know;  but  they  are  are  rare  exceptions." 

The  Gobelin  tapestries  were  another  reminder  of  the  differ- 
ence between  the  French  and  American  attitude.  "In  this  coun- 


48  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

try  we  like  to  do  things  in  a  hurry.  We  pride  ourselves  on  our 
speed  and  efficiency.  But  the  French  know  better.  They  realize 
that  what  is  best  in  art  results  from  a  slow  and  careful  develop- 
ment. On  each  of  these  tapestries  the  workers  spend  several 
years.  They  do  their  painting  with  wool  or  with  silk,  sometimes 
with  a  mixture.  A  square  yard  a  year  is  considered  a  reasonable 
amount  of  work  for  one  man,  but  that  square  yard  is  perfect  in 
every  detail.  Each  man  feels  the  artistic  responsibility  of  his  task. 
He  is  helping  to  reproduce  a  painting  that,  in  most  instances,  is 
done  by  a  master.  He  works  with  the  painting  behind  him,  re- 
flected before  his  eyes  in  a  mirror." 

The  painter  called  my  attention  to  the  difference  in  the  color- 
ing between  the  tapestries  that  were  new  and  those  that  were  old. 
In  the  new  work  the  coloring  was  almost  glaring,  but  the  work- 
ers had  in  mind  not  the  effect  of  the  present  but  of  the  future. 
Like  all  the  Gobelin  tapestries,  these  were  designed  under  the 
direction  of  the  French  government  for  use  in  the  governmental 
buildings.  Such  Gobelins  as  had  come  out  of  France  had  been 
presented  as  gifts  or  had  been  smuggled  out,  in  some  instances 
by  way  of  the  French  Revolution  and  those  other  disturbances 
that  tested  the  valiant  spirit  of  the  French  people. 

"There's  a  lot  of  history  behind  those  Gobelin  tapestries,"  said 
the  painter,  as  we  stood  in  front  of  those  blue  studies  of  scenes 
from  the  life  of  Joan  of  Arc,  made  from  drawings  by  the  cele- 
brated French  painter,  Jean  Paul  Laurens.  "In  fact,  for  the  past 
five  hundred  years  the  name  'Gobelin*  has  been  associated  with 
most  of  the  notable  events  in  France.  The  Gobelins,  as  a  family, 
first  became  well  known  among  the  French  people  about  the 
middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.  They  are  supposed  to  have  come 
from  Rheims.  One  of  them  discovered  a  scarlet  dye  and  built  a 
great  dye  factory  in  Paris,  at  first  called  'Gobelin's  Folly.'  The 
business  prospered  and  went  on  from  generation  to  generation. 
In  the  sixteenth  century  the  descendants  started  a  manufactory 
of  tapestries.  Some  of  them  grew  so  rich  that  they  gave  up  busi- 
ness and  bought  titles  of  nobility.  Several  Gobelins  became  dis- 
tinguished state  officials.  In  1662  the  factories  were  bought  by 
Colbert  for  Louis  XIV  and  converted  into  governmental  works 
for  the  making  of  upholstery,  with  the  painter,  Lebrun,  at  the 
head  of  the  department  devoted  to  tapestry.  So  the  Lebruns  here 
are  among  the  first  of  the  tapestries  that  were  made  under  royal 
authority.  In  1694  Louis  XIV  got  into  money  difficulties,  and  as 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  49 

a  result  the  factories  were  closed  for  about  three  years.  Then 
they  were  opened  for  the  making  of  tapestries  alone,  to  be  used 
for  the  royal  family  and  to  be  distributed  as  royal  gifts.  During 
the  revolution  and  during  Napoleon's  time  they  were  closed. 
Louis  Philippe  started  the  work  going  again,  and  not  long  after- 
ward there  was  added  the  making  of  carpets.  In  1871  the  building 
was  attacked  by  the  Communists  and  partly  destroyed." 

The  two  paintings  by  Cazin  at  either  side  of  the  door  appealed 
to  my  companion  for  their  quiet  yet  rich  coloring,  for  their  at- 
mosphere of  peace  and  for  their  fidelity  to  the  character  of  the 
French  landscape.  "It  was  a  happy  scheme  to  place  them  here, 
where  they  were  bound  to  secure  attention  and  where  they  could 
give  a  distinctive  note  to  the  building.  They  express  the  idealism 
at  the  heart  of  the  French  people,  so  often  misunderstood  by  the 
foreigner,  the  kind  of  idealism  that  caused  the  French  revolution 
and  the  commune  and  those  other  outbreaks,  terrible  in  them- 
selves, but  revealing  the  longing  of  a  great  people  for  freedom 
and  equality.  It  is  an  interesting  circumstance  that  in  France  the 
land  is,  for  the  most  part,  broken  up  into  small  holdings.  The 
French  really  own  their  own  country,  which  is  more  than  can 
be  said  for  some  other  countries  supposed  to  be  dedicated  to  lib- 
erty and  fraternity." 

As  we  walked  up  the  stairs  leading  into  the  great  hall  form- 
ing the  heart  of  the  pavilion,  we  found  those  splendid  Rodins,  in- 
cluding "The  Age  of  Brass,"  "A  Siren,"  the  two  busts  of  Henri 
Rochefort,  "War,"  and  "The  Head  of  John  the  Baptist."  If  this 
magnificent  pavilion  were  distinguished  for  nothing  else,  these 
Rodins  would  make  it  distinguished.  It  is  good  to  think  that  they 
all  belong  to  this  country  and  are  likely  to  remain  here.  Several 
have  been  lent  by  Mrs.  A.  B.  Spreckels,  of  San  Francisco,  includ- 
ing "The  Thinker"  in  the  Court  of  Honor,  which  would  look  very 
fine  in  our  Golden  Gate  Park.  By  the  way,  I  notice  that  the  great 
authority  on  city  planning,  Frederick  C.  Howe,  during  his  recent 
visit  here,  gave  enthusiastic  praise  both  to  our  park  and  to  our 
statuary.  When  you  consider  how  poor  much  of  the  statuary  in 
this  country  is,  we  have  reason  to  be  grateful.  These  works  of 
Rodin's  are  sure  to  have  an  influence  on  our  sculptors,  to  make 
them  see  that  really  characteristic  work  can  find  widespread  ap- 
preciation. I  wonder  if  San  Franciscans  realize  how  well  the  local 
sculptors  have  displayed  their  ability  in  this  Exposition.  Five 


50  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

men  have  distinguished  themselves  for  fine  work — Ralph  Stack- 
pole,  Arthur  Putnam,  Haig  Patigian,  Edgar  Walter  and  Robert 
Aitken,  who,  if  he  no  longer  lives  here,  is  a  San  Franciscan  at 
heart." 

As  we  were  looking  at  the  curious  little  marble  figure  of  a 
woman's  face,  Egyptian  in  treatment,  with  the  mouth  open,  the 
lips  protruding  in  a  way  almost  repulsive,  a  lady  came  forward, 
followed  by  a  gentleman.  "What  a  shame  it  is  those  pencil  marks 
aren't  rubbed  off,"  she  said.  "They  spoil  the  appearance  of  the 
marble." 

The  painter  turned  to  me  with  a  smile.  "As  a  matter  of  fact," 
he  remarked,  "those  pencil  marks  were  placed  there  by  Rodin 
himself,  why,  I  can't  imagine,  possibly  to  carry  out  the  design 
that  he  used  in  the  treatment  of  the  head  which  gives  it  the 
Egyptian  suggestion.  However,  he  is  always  experimenting  and, 
in  looking  at  his  work,  one  ought  to  bear  in  mind  that  it  ex- 
presses a  very  curious  and  original  character,  with  a  strong  lean- 
ing in  the  direction  of  eccentricity,  and  with  a  particular  fondness 
for  making  eccentric  effects.  In  some  of  his  work,  of  course,  he 
is  absolutely  straightforward.  Observe  the  directness,  as  well  as 
the  strength  in  his  treatment  of  the  interesting  and  characteristic 
head  of  Henri  Rochefort,  that  temperamental  rebel.  And  then 
there  is  that  delightful  bust  of  Falguiere,  the  French  painter  and 
sculptor,  in  the  French  section  of  the  Fine  Arts,  in  my  opinion 
one  of  the  finest  portrait  studies  ever  done  by  a  sculptor,  ancient 
or  modern." 

In  the  gallery  to  the  left  we  found  that  superb  painting  by 
Puvis  de  Chavannes,  "Hope,"  so  greatly  admired  by  artists  the 
world  over,  an  ideal  example  of  the  nude,  delicately  felt  and 
painted  with  reserve  and  tenderness.  "Puvis  de  Chavannes  did 
this  work  when  France  was  just  recovering  from  the  desolation 
of  1870.  How  simply  he  has  treated  the  background,  and  yet  how 
he  has  made  that  landscape  express  the  sadness  of  France.  The 
nude  girl  carries  the  promise  of  the  revival  of  nature,  with  the 
return  of  courage  and  ambition  and  energy.  Its  beauty  and  charm 
can  be  perceived  even  by  those  who  do  not  appreciate  the  work 
of  this  master  in  general.  It  is,  indeed,  one  of  his  greatest  tri- 
umphs, an  example  of  genius  that  was  his  without  apparent  effort 
and  with  absolute  simplicity. 

Another  Puvis  de  Chavannes  we  found  nearby,  consisting  of 
an  original  sketch  of  the  wonderful  mural  decoration  made  for 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  51 

the  Pantheon  between  the  years  1897  and  1908,  the  latest  and  one 
of  the  greatest  of  his  murals.  It  celebrated  Saint  Genevieve, 
patroness  of  Paris,  coming  to  the  aid  of  the  starving  people  when 
they  were  attacked  by  Attila  and  the  Huns  in  451.  "It  has  more 
life  and  warmth  than  some  of  the  master's  work,  than  the  ex- 
ample that  is  so  much  admired  in  the  Palace  of  Fine  Arts,  pure 
Greek  in  feeling  and  wonderfully  delicate  in  treatment.  Puvis  is 
a  poet  among  painters,  and,  like  many  great  poets,  he  is  often 
misunderstood  by  the  people  at  large  and  appreciated  only  by  the 
experts.  His  technical  ability  is  extraordinary.  There  are  those, 
however,  who  find  in  his  painting  a  curiously  anemic  suggestion. 
However,  of  its  kind  it  is  the  most  notable  work  done  in  modern 
art.  Perhaps  one  proof  of  its  quality  lies  in  its  being  so  rarely 
imitated.  For  all  his  eminence,  Puvis  did  not  found  a  school.  He 
stood  alone." 

A  painter  often  spoken  of  as  the  founder  of  a  school,  the  maker 
indeed  of  a  revolution,  we  met  when  we  reached  "The  Balcony," 
by  Manet.  "It's  hard  to  believe  that  the  simple  group  up  there 
could  have  created  a  sensation  a  half-century  ago.  What  could 
be  simpler  than  those  three  typically  French  figures  on  the  bal- 
cony— two  young  ladies  and  a  gentleman?  The  older  of  the  two 
ladies,  by  the  way,  is  Berthe  Morisot,  Manet's  sister-in-law,  one 
of  the  greatest  of  woman  painters,  a  leader  in  the  early  French 
impressionist  group.  At  the  time  this  canvas  was  painted  Manet 
was  the  most  ridiculed  figure  in  Paris.  People  used  to  go  to  see 
his  pictures  merely  for  the  sake  of  laughing.  They  would  begin 
to  laugh  as  they  went  up  the  stairs.  A  great  deal  of  fun  was  made 
of  this  balcony  because  it  was  green.  The  two  ladies  were  ridi- 
culed and  criticised  on  account  of  their  appearance,  and  the  dog 
at  their  feet  was  spoken  of  as  if  he  were  a  monster.  The  trouble 
was  that  those  Parisians  were  devoted  to  the  old  school  of  paint- 
ing and  could  not  understand  that  Manet  was  introducing  a  new 
technique,  a  more  natural  treatment  of  light,  bringing  out  truer 
effects  of  perspective.  Close  observation  of  the  picture  will  show 
details  of  the  background,  including  the  outlines  of  a  figure,  very 
dim,  all  of  which  suggest  how  finely  Manet  observed.  For  many 
years  he  fought  against  a  perfect  storm  of  abuse.  He  must  have 
had  great  character  to  endure  it  and  go  on  working.  But  he  en- 
joyed the  satisfaction  of  seeing  a  little  group  of  admirers  gather 
around  him,  several  of  them  now  of  world-v/ide  distinction." 


52  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

From  that  Manet  the  painter  led  me  to  the  two  canvases  by 
Monet,  both  characteristic,  one  an  interesting  example  of  his 
magnificent  cathedral  series,  painted  from  the  windows  of  a  mil- 
liner's shop  in  Rouen.  "When  Manet  was  at  the  height  of  his 
notoriety,  before  he  was  accepted  as  a  genuine  master,  he  went 
into  an  exhibition  in  Paris  one  day  and  he  saw  people  standing 
in  front  of  a  canvas  by  an  unknown  painter  named  Monet.  'Who 
is  this  fellow,'  he  said,  'that  uses  a  name  almost  identical  with 
mine  in  order  to  advertise  himself  '  The  remark  was  repeated  to 
Monet,  who  felt  so  hurt  that  afterward  he  was  careful  to  sign 
himself  by  his  full  name,  Claude  Monet.  Not  long  after  the  inci- 
dent Manet  and  Monet  became  friends,  and  they  remained  friends 
till  Manet's  death  in  1883.  There  are  those  who,  while  they 
acknowledge  the  revolutionary  character  of  Manet's  work  in  its 
treatment  of  light,  nevertheless  say  that  Monet  is  the  real  leader 
of  the  open-air  or  impressionist  school.  Monet  is  still  painting  in 
Giverny,  his  home  in  the  country,  half  way  between  Paris  and 
Rouen.  But  among  the  younger  painters  of  Paris  he  does  not 
maintain  his  prestige.  They  regard  him  as  old-fashioned,  and  they 
think  they  have  left  him  far  behind.  Where  he  was  once  ridiculed 
because  he  was  too  advanced,  he  is  now  ridiculed  because  he  is 
not  advanced  enough.  However,  his  place  in  the  world  of  art  is 
secure.  His  work  not  only  has  great  beauty  in  itself  and  marvel- 
ous technical  skill,  but  it  has  an  historic  interest,  through  marking 
the  brilliant  beginning  of  an  epoch." 

"By  the  way,"  the  painter  went  on,  "it's  interesting  to  trace 
the  effect  of  the  open-air  school,  both  on  the  work  and  on  the 
lives  of  the  impressionists.  As  any  one  can  see,  it  drove  them  out 
of  the  studios  into  the  fields.  Most  of  them  left  Paris  and  settled 
in  the  country.  The  portraits  that  they  painted  of  one  another 
show  that  they  looked  like  healthy  farmers." 

After  this  comment  I  was  interested  in  studying  the  examples 
of  impressionism  that  we  found  here,  the  work  of  such  disting- 
uished men  as  Pissaro,  Renoir,  Sisley,  Besnard  and  of  Cezanne, 
who  was  destined  to  extend  the  boundaries  of  impressionism  and 
to  lead  the  way  to  those  present-day  movements  so  interesting 
and  so  puzzling — post-impressionism,  cubism  and  futurism — all 
representing  efforts  to  express  the  new  psychology  in  terms  of 
painting. 

We  suddenly  came  to  those  two  startling  paintings  of  Christ 
on  the  cross,  facing  each  other — one  by  Carriere,  first  exhibited 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  53 

in  the  salon  in  1897,  and  the  other  by  Henner,  painted  according 
to  the  order  of  the  government,  for  the  Palace  of  Justice  in  Paris. 
"These  canvases  show  how  differently  two  modern  painters  can 
be  affected  by  the  same  theme.  Henner's  work  is  theatrical,  Car- 
riere's  work  is  dramatic.  Henner  gives  us  a  realistic  study  of 
Christ,  ably  painted,  it  is  true,  but  with  a  use  of  green  on  the 
flesh  that  is  almost  repulsive.  Carriere  envelops  Christ  and  the 
cross  in  a  haze,  with  the  grief-stricken  figure  of  Mary  at  the  foot 
of  the  cross.  Without  seeming  in  any  way  to  reach  for  an  effect, 
he  makes  us  feel  the  depth  of  the  scene  and  the  poignancy.  Of  all 
the  paintings  of  Christ  in  the  Exposition  this  canvas  seems  to  me 
by  far  the  finest." 

Another  example  of  Carriere's  work  we  found  in  the  portrait 
of  the  French  novelist,  Alphonse  Daudet  and  his  daughter,  paint- 
ed in  1890,  when  Daudet  looked  as  if  he  were  already  stricken 
with  illness.  The  painter  had  perfectly  reproduced  the  fineness  in 
the  features  and  the  weariness  in  the  pose  and  in  the  face.  One 
could  see  that  Daudet  had  become  what  the  French  called  "a  man 
fatigued."  The  work  asra  whole  was  very  interesting,  suggesting 
a  tender  relation  between  the  charming  girl  and  her  father,  the 
man  who  had  made  those  voluminous  studies  of  life  that  caused 
him  to  be  known  as  the  French  Dickens.  "Both  the  Carrieres 
are  good,"  said  the  painter,  "but  it  is  the  Christ  on  the  cross  that 
deserves  to  live." 


THE  ITALIAN  FUTURISTS 
xv 

|T'S  easy  to  laugh  at  the  Italian  futurists,"  said 
the  painter,  as  we  went  up  the  stairs  in  the 
annex  to  the  Palace  of  Fine  Arts,  "but  it's  more 
profitable  to  find  out  what  they're  trying  to 
do." 

With  those  words  in  my  mind  I  tried  to  be 
serious  when  I  stood  among  those  curious  ex- 
amples of  one  of  the  new  and  revolutionary 
movements  in  art.  But  no  such  ambition  con- 
troled  some  of  the  people  about  me.  They  were  having  a  good 
time,  pointing  out  to  one  another  good  examples  of  absurdity. 
"There's  a  big  idea  behind  all  this  work,"  said  the  painter,  "and 


54  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

one  ought  to  keep  it  in  mind.  It  will  put  a  check  on  hasty  judg- 
ment. The  futurists  say  that  up  to  the  present  time  art  has  been 
conventional  and  limited.  The  artists  have  been  like  men  shut  up 
in  prison.  They  have  worked  in  a  routine  as  bad  as  a  treadmill. 
They've  exalted  the  merely  physical  and  they've  looked  at  the 
physical  in  a  limited  way  without  seeing  it  as  it  really  is,  under 
the  influence  of  its  manifold  mental  and  moral  and  spiritual  rela- 
tions. The  painting  of  the  nude,  for  example,  which  has  been  so 
exalted  down  the  ages,  they  regard  as  stupid.  To  them  a  nude 
woman  in  a  picture  has  exactly  the  value  of  a  nude  animal.  What 
is  important  about  a  human  being,  they  maintain,  is  not  the  body. 
It's  the  mind  and  the  character;  it's  the  subjective  reaction  that 
goes  on  with  experience." 

"Then  futurism  is  mainly  psychological,"  I  ventured  to  re- 
mark. 

"True.  But  that  statement  doesn't  fully  express  what  it  is.  It 
is  all  that  and  much  more.  In  a  sense,  it  is  subjective,  and  yet  it 
deals  with  the  objective,  too.  It  gives  a  new  interpretation  to 
the  old  saying  that  'art  recovers  the  innocence  of  the  eye.'  It 
makes  those  words  really  mean  that  art  recovers  the  innocence 
of  the  mind,  that  it  records  subtle  impressions  and  forces  that 
have  never  before  been  considered  to  belong  in  the  field  of  art. 
Futurism  is  suggestive  in  a  new  sense  and  it  is  symbolic  in  a  new 
sense.  It  depicts  emotions,  sounds,  even  smells.  You  see,  it  is 
striving  almost  desperately  to  reach  the  essence  of  things.  A 
writer  like  Henry  James,  whether  he  knows  it  or  not,  is  working 
in  a  somewhat  similar  way  in  literature." 

We  were  standing  in  front  of  one  of  the  largest  paintings  in 
the  room,  by  Boccioni,  quaintly  described  in  the  catalogue  as 
"Dynamism  of  a  Footballer."  It  looked  like  the  picture  of  sheets 
of  beautifully  colored  tin,  massed  together.  "Of  all  the  Italian 
futurists,"  said  the  painter,  "I  consider  Boccioni  the  most  inter- 
esting. This  painting  gives  a  clue  to  what  the  futurists  are  doing. 
Those  fellows  are  unquestionably  great  colorists,  whatever  else 
may  be  said  of  them.  And  their  use  of  color  is  in  harmony  with 
the  more  recent  discoveries  between  the  relation  of  color  and  vi- 
bration. The  futurists  are  introducing  the  violet  rays  into  new 
forms  of  art  and  making  them  a  means  of  reaching  emotional  ex- 
pression. Moreover,  they  agree  with  modern  science  in  insisting  on 
the  supreme  value  of  energy.  You  know  that  matter,  as  merely 
a  form  of  energy,  is  now  accepted  by  science.  It  is  energy  that  the 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  55 

futurists  are  always  putting  into  their  pictures  in  one  form  or  an- 
other. It  need  not  be  physical  force,  as  in  this  picture  of  the  foot- 
ball player  tearing  down  the  field,  covered  with  sweat  and  in- 
spired by  the  brutal  struggle  and  the  excitement  and  applause  of 
the  crowd.  It  may  be  the  energy  that  goes  with  quiesence.  This 
work  might  have  been  called  'A  Spiritual  Picture  of  a  Football 
Player  During  a  Great  Play'." 

By  this  time  my  mind  was  somewhat  bewildered.  "I  don't 
think  I  quite  get  it,"  I  remarked.  "But  now  that  you  have  ex- 
plained the  situation,  I  can  see  that  the  work  expresses  some 
mental  confusion." 

The  painter  smiled  indulgently.  "I  didn't  get  it  at  first,"  he 
said.  "It  takes  some  time.  But  when  you  do  get  it  you  see  what 
the  futurists  mean  by  saying  that  photography  has  killed  the  old 
physical  forms  of  art.  In  future,  according  to  them,  the  artists 
must  deal  with  those  finer  considerations  that  lie  far  beyond  the 
camera's  reach." 

The  painter  led  me  to  another  Boccioni  nearby,  smaller  and  al- 
most as  cryptic.  "Look  intently  at  it,"  he  said,  "and  tell  me  if 
you  see  anything  you  recognize." 

I  looked  and  after  a  long  interval  I  thought  I  had  an  idea. 

"Is  it  a  horse?"  I  ventured. 

The  painter  was  delighted.  Yes,  it  was  a  horse. 

"But  it's  a  queer  sort  of  horse,"  I  remarked.  "I  don't  think 
I've  ever  seen  one  just  like  it  before." 

I  felt  proud  of  my  achievement,  and  yet,  somehow,  I  was  un- 
easy. There  might  be  some  trap. 

"If  Boccioni  were  here  he'd  say  you  saw  this  sort  of  horse 
every  day  of  your  life.  It's  simply  a  horse  in  motion  with  a  woman 
rider.  It's  a  decomposed  picture,  so  to  speak.  It's  what  we  see  be- 
fore we  put  a  scene  into  conventionalized  form,  before  we  system- 
atize it  according  to  our  understanding  of  what  it  ought  to  be. 
It's  what  the  babe  sees  by  means  of  the  innocence  of  the  eye." 

The  painter  turned  away.  "Now  come  and  see  another  inter- 
esting fellow,  Carra,"  he  said,  indicating  one  of  the  smaller  pic- 
tures. "How  does  it  strike  you?"  he  asked,  when  we  were  fairly 
close. 

After  due  reflection  and  still  in  that  nervous  state  of  mind 
due  to  that  possible  trap,  I  said:  "I  like  the  coloring,  but  there's 
nothing  else  there  I  can  grasp.  What  is  it?" 


56  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

The  painter  was  already  on  his  way  to  another  masterpiece. 
"It's  the  'Disintegration  of  Flesh',"  he  said,  and  perhaps  fearing 
that  I  might  be  squeamish,  he  went  on,  pointing  to  another  can- 
vas: "In  'A  Woman's  Shape  and  Scents'  we  have  the  expression 
of  a  healthy  woman  as  she  exists  in  Carra's  consciousness.  Now 
there's  a  third  picture  that  ought  to  be  looked  at  in  connection 
with  those  two,  although  it  happens  to  be  painted  by  another  man 
— Severini,  also  very  interesting." 

It  was  a  mass  of  brilliant  color,  more  or  less  remotely  related 
to  the  form  of  a  woman.  "Here  we  have  a  woman  dancing  and  we 
are  given  not  the  body  alone,  but  the  spirit,  alive,  glowing,  full  of 
light  and  joy." 

Some  people  near  us  were  listening  and  smiling.  They  looked 
quizzically  at  the  painter  and  yet  with  a  certain  kindly  regard. 
Then  it  dawned  upon  me  that  they  took  him  for  a  jollier. 

"The  Italian  futurists  aren't  lacking  in  humor,"  said  the  paint- 
er, pointing  to  Severini's  "Dynamic  Decomposition  of  the  Por- 
trait of  the  Poet  Marinetti."  "It  shows  a  certain  humor  on  their 
part  to  introduce  this  caricature  of  their  own  work  here,  as  well 
as  courage.  It  looks  as  if  it  had  been  done  in  five  minutes  by  a 
joker  with  a  gift  for  artistic  improvisation.  It  probably  was.  But 
it  is  interesting,  nevertheless,  on  account  of  the  history  behind  it. 
Marinetti  stands  at  the  head  of  the  group  of  thirty  painters  who 
represent  the  new  movement  in  Italy.  Though  he  isn't  a  painter 
himself,  he  is  supposed  to  be  a  critic  of  great  ability  and  he  has 
thrown  himself  heart  and  soul  into  the  advocacy  of  the  futurist 
cause.  Observe  the  strip  of  what  looks  like  black  velvet  stuck  on 
the  cardboard  background.  It's  an  emblem  of  what  Marinetti  used 
to  stand  for  before  his  conversion.  He  was  an  art  critic  of  the  old 
school,  with  an  established  reputation.  He  was  also  an  accepted 
poet.  He  used  to  write  and  lecture  on  what  the  futurists  now  call 
'physical  painting.'  When  he  changed  he  was  naturally  much  ridi- 
culed. At  some  of  his  lectures  on  futurism  in  Florence  the  audi- 
ence threw  eggs  and  vegetables  at  him  and  the  newspapers  at- 
tacked him.  The  suggestions  of  newspapers  incorporated  into  the 
picture  and  the  quotations  indicate  the  character  of  the  treatment 
he  received,  you  see,  not  through  resentment,  but  through  good- 
natured  irony.  The  chances  are  that  he  enjoyed  the  excitement.  In 
the  process  of  disintegration  you  will  observe  that  his  mustache 
has  suffered.  The  treatment  of  that  mustache  is  significant.  Nearly 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  57 

all  the  futurists  have  shaved  off  their  mustaches,  but  Marinetti 
refused  to  make  the  sacrifice.  His  refusal  has  been  the  subject  of 
many  jokes  among  his  colleagues.  Those  black  curved  lines  are 
doubtless  intended  to  suggest  the  passions  of  hate  and  anger  that 
were  excited  by  the  movement." 

"All  those  meanings,"  I  remarked,  "are  necessary  for  an  un- 
derstanding of  the  picture.  But  unless  one  hears  them  explained, 
how  is  one  to  find  a  clew?  There  doesn't  seem  to  be  any  common 
language  even  among  the  futurists  themselves." 

"That  criticism  has  often  been  made,"  said  the  painter,  turning 
to  a  canvas  by  Russolo,  supposed  to  represent  "A  Woman  Walk- 
ing." "They  really  are  developing  a  kind  of  language  in  their  use 
of  color.  In  a  general  way,  the  heavy,  dark  colors,  for  example, 
suggest  force.  They  may  be  described  as  masculine.  The  lighter 
colors  have  a  feminine  quality  on  account  of  their  delicacy  and 
fineness.  Light  green  is  supposed  to  indicate  intellectuality.  This 
woman  is  painted  mainly  in  blue.  The  repetition  of  the  figure 
suggests  that  the  painter  wants  to  convey  the  impression  of  the 
woman  repeated  in  the  mind  of  the  artist  as  she  goes  along.  The 
blending  in  of  green  may  be  an  intimation  that  she  is  a  literary 
woman  or  a  feminist." 

"The  futurists  have  plenty  of  scope  for  the  imagination,  don't 
they?" 

"Exactly.  The  truth  is  that  they  are  all  individualists.  Nearly 
every  canvas  in  this  room  is  capable  of  varied  interpretations.  A 
few  make  concessions  to  the  shape  of  the  figure.  Others  make  no 
concessions  at  all." 

"Do  you  really  think  that  the  movement  means  anything 
vital?"  I  asked. 

"All  striving,  all  seeking  for  originality,  has  in  it  something 
that  is  vital.  But  whether  the  force  that  is  represented  here  is 
mere  eccentricity  and  wildness,  or  whether  it  is  going  to  open 
new  avenues  to  the  artists  of  the  future  is  a  big  question.  Perhaps 
the  best  service  of  the  new  men  who  are  upsetting  the  artistic 
world,  the  Post-Impressionists,  the  Cubists  and  the  Futurists, 
will  be  found  to  be  that  they  make  artists  question  the  conven- 
tions. A  movement  of  this  kind,  though  it  may  pass  away  and  be 
remembered  only  for  its  absurdity,  nevertheless  may  exert  a  sub- 
tle and  healthy  influence,  none  the  less  real  because  it  is  hardly 
traceable.  What  is  to  me  most  significant  about  the  work  of  the 


58  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Italian  futurists  is  that  it  emphasizes  the  mental  and  spiritual 
qualities  and  their  relation  to  color.  For  a  long  time  the  Theoso- 
phists  have  been  trying  to  make  us  see  this  relation.  Nearly  all  of 
the  great  religions  have  scorned  the  mere  physical  body  and  given 
it  value  only  through  its  transient  identification  with  the  soul. 
The  Theosophists  go  so  far  as  to  say  that  what  we  think  and 
feel  takes  on  expressions  in  color  of  the  astral  body.  They  even 
show  photographs  of  the  astral  body  under  the  influence  .of  differ- 
ent emotions.  The  colors  expressing  anger,  for  example,  are 
startling  in  the  violence  of  their  reddish  tones.  And,  of  course, 
we  all  know  that  experiments  have  shown  a  relation  between 
health  and  certain  colors." 

"But  aren't  the  futurists  trying  to  reach  beyond  the  realms  of 
art?"  I  asked. 

"Ah,  but  who  can  say  where  the  realms  of  art  come  to  an  end. 
The  futurists  believe  that,  on  this  subject,  the  world  has  held  false 
opinions  altogether  too  long.  They  think  they  have  found  new 
and  brilliant  worlds  to  conquer.  What  they  are  undertaking  to  do 
is  fascinating.  They  are  right  when  they  say  that  our  symbols  are 
petty  and  misleading.  For  example,  when  a  painter  puts  the  siren 
type  of  woman  on  a  canvas,  the  woman  that  wrecks  homes,  he  is 
almost  certain  to  be  careful  to  make  us  feel  the  evil  qualities 
through  showing  them  conspicuously  in  the  face.  But  we  know 
that  this  type  of  woman  never  gives  herself  away  in  this  open 
fashion.  If  she  did  she  would  defeat  her  own  purpose.  She  prob- 
ably succeeds  because  she  looks  so  innocent.  The  futurist,  in 
dealing  with  this  kind  of  character,  looks  for  the  essential  quali- 
ties, not  in  the  face,  but  in  the  mind.  He  gives  us  a  picture  that, 
as  the  members  of  his  school  like  to  say,  suggests  the  dynamic 
forces  that  produce  so  much  woe.  In  this  connection  it  is  well  for 
us  to  bear  in  mind  the  saying  of  one  of  the  great  masters  to  a 
pupil  that  was  working  along  accepted  lines:  'Till  you  have  awak- 
ened the  contempt  of  fools  you  haven't  done  a  really  good  piece 
of  work'." 

"On  the  other  hand,"  I  said,  "isn't  it  possible  that  the  futurists 
are  having  a  little  fun  at  our  expense?" 

The  painter  gave  the  question  serious  consideration.  Then  he 
said:  "I  believe  these  fellows  are  sincere.  If  they  weren't,  they 
couldn't  put  so  much  thought  and  power  into  their  canvases." 


THE  ITALIAN  PAVILION 

XVI 

OMING  towards  the  Italian  Pavilion  the  paint- 
er remarked:  "The  Italians  know  how  to  do 
things.  They  feel  the  intimate  relation  between 
the  beautiful  and  the  useful.  They  have  made 
beauty  express  a  kind  of  efficiency.  After  all, 
efficiency  and  beauty  are,  it  seems  to  me,  vir- 
tually identical.  The  efficient  way  is  the  beau- 
tiful way.  The  qualities  that  make  up  efficiency 
include  ease  and  grace  and  joy  in  life,  and  that 
expression  of  spontaneous  energizing  which  ought  to  go  with  all 
work.  Surely  the  efficient  way  of  living  is  making  life  both  useful 
and  beautiful." 

These  remarks  reminded  me  of  one  of  W.  D.  Howell's  favorite 
sayings,  "Everything  good  comes  out  of  Italy."  When  I  quoted 
it,  the  painter  went  on:  "They  are  a  great  race,  the  Italians.  One 
explanation  lies  in  their  inheritance.  What  a  background  they 
have,  not  only  in  the  ruins  of  Rome  and  their  other  great  cities 
of  the  pagan  era,  but  in  their  traditions.  Beauty  has  been  a  part 
of  their  inheritance.  But  it  doesn't  explain  their  activity  in  so 
many  kinds  of  enterprise.  How  interesting  it  would  be  if  we  could 
only  get  at  the  fundamental  causes  that  differentiate  the  nations 
of  the  world.  Perhaps  they  are  too  subtle  to  be  demonstrated. 
Often  they  must  start  in  the  influence  of  a  single,  inspiring  per- 
sonality who  creates  an  ideal  in  the  minds  of  the  people  and  who 
is  perhaps  forgotten  while  the  ideal  is  making  a  spiritual  or  an 
economic  or  a  social  revolution  which  shows  that  a  whole  nation 
has  been  inspired." 

As  we  looked  at  the  group  of  buildings  that  made  the  pavilion 
the  painter  proceeded  to  express  enthusiasm  for  the  Italian  ar- 
chitect, Piacentini,  who  had  successfully  combined  so  many  typi- 
cally Italian  styles  and  succeeded  in  giving  them  unity.  "How 
true  it  is,"  he  said,  "that  architecture  is  history.  There  was  a  re- 
markable development  of  building  associated  with  the  activities 
of  the  Italian  cities  for  several  hundred  years  before  the  seven- 
teenth century,  and  Piancenti  has  echoed  it  here.  From  the  time 
of  the  dawn  of  Christianity  the  Church  has  done  some  of  her  fin- 
est building  in  Italy.  It  was  inevitable  that  a  characteristically 
Italian  structure  like  this  pavilion  should  carry  suggestions  of  the 


60  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

spiritual  and  the  ecclesiastical.  The  Carthusian  cloister,  which  Pi- 
acentini  has  used,  shows  the  influence  pf  Brunelleschi,  greatest 
of  all  Italian  architects,  revered  by  architects  today  the  world 
over.  This  courtyard  that  we  are  standing  in  takes  us  back  to  the 
fourteenth  century.  That  small  building  over  there  which  houses 
the  Cannessa  collection  suggests  the  mediaeval  religious  architec- 
ture of  Perugia.  In  all  the  detail  there  is  historical  suggestion,  all 
the  more  interesting  because  it  is  so  perfectly  blended.  Through- 
out these  are  hints  of  periods  and  motifs  which,  if  we  could  look 
back  at  the  history  behind  them,  would  make  us  realize  what  a 
hive  of  artistic  industry  Italy  has  been  from  generation  to  gen- 
eration." 

Before  we  entered  the  pavilion  we  stopped  to  admire  the  foun- 
tains and  the  bits  of  sculpture  outside,  some  of  them  copied  from 
works  included  among  the  world's  most  valued  possessions.  We 
decided  to  enter  by  the  royal  salon,  where  we  knew  we  should  find 
that  brilliant  mural  decoration  by  the  young  Italian  artist,  Pieret- 
to  Bianco,  one  of  the  greatest  painters  in  the  Italy  of  today. 
"When  Joseph  Pennell  was  out  here,"  the  painter  remarked,  as  we 
stood  in  the  magnificent  hall,  "he  said  that,  in  his  opinion,  this 
work  was  the  finest  of  all  the  murals  in  the  Exposition.  It  hasn't 
had  nearly  as  much  attention  as  it  deserves.  See  the  people  pass- 
ing under  it  without  giving  it  so  much  as  a  look.  Perhaps  one  rea- 
son is  that  it  blends  so  harmoniously  into  the  architecture  of  the 
room.  And  yet  it  is  impossible  for  anyone  who  has  any  feeling 
for  art  to  glance  at  it  without  feeling  the  splendor  of  the  concep- 
tion and  the  picturesqueness  and  power  in  the  treatment,  and  the 
rich  beauty  of  the  coloring." 

Up  the  great  stairways  on  either  side  of  the  gilded  Roman 
half-dome  half-nude  figures,  women  and  men,  were  bearing  gifts 
to  be  offered  to  the  figure  in  the  center  of  the  canvas,  a  magnifi- 
cent woman  in  the  dress  of  a  warrior,  Rome.  "It's  a  pagan  con- 
ception, isn't  it?"  said  the  painter,  with  a  shrug  of  his  shoulders. 
It  leaves  out  a  great  deal  in  the  way  of  devotion  to  ideals,  of  as- 
piration toward  spirituality.  "But  it's  done  so  well  you  have  to 
admire  it." 

From  the  salon  we  passed  into  the  vestibule,  where  we  found 
many  pieces  of  furniture  to  admire  for  their  beauty.  They  repre- 
sented commercial  art  at  its  best.  "When  the  war  broke  out,"  said 
the  painter,  "it  was  found  that  many  of  the  treasures  which  the 
Italian  government  had  intended  to  send  here  in  the  way  of  an- 
tique furniture  could  not  be  shipped  without  great  risk  and  at 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  61 

prohibitive  insurance  rates.  So  it  was  decided  that  work  of  this 
kind  should  be  used  in  their  place,  a  wise  decision  under  the  cir- 
cumstances. But  it  was  a  pity  that  the  government  was  unable  to 
carry  out  its  idea  of  presenting  here  an  idealized  Italian  dwelling 
house,  filled  with  typically  Italian  treasures,  directly  related  to 
everyday  use." 

In  the  other  rooms  we  found  many  reminders  of  Italy  s  artis- 
tic and  social  and  political  activity,  both  in  the  past  and  in  the 
present.  They  included  the  lovely  work  of  Luca  della  Robbia  in 
majolica,  the  murals  of  Ferrari,  the  reproductions  of  masterpieces 
in  sculpture  and  painting  by  such  workers  as  Tiepolo,  Raphael, 
Murilla,  Luini,  Michael  Angelo  and  Donatello,  reproductions  of 
Roman  scenes  and  Italy's  activity  in  fighting  disease  and  crime. 
Most  interesting  of  all  the  rooms  was  the  Pompeian  museum, 
filled  with  interesting  examples  of  treasures  dug  from  the  ruins 
of  Pompeii,  some  of  them  copies,  others  originals — bronze  statues, 
pieces  of  silver,  bas-reliefs,  candlesticks,  vases,  musical  and  sur- 
gical instruments. 

Those  surgical  instruments  greatly  interested  the  painter. 
"Observe  their  designs,"  he  said.  "They  are  developed  out  of  the 
very  principles  that  our  present  surgical  instruments  are  built  on. 
Have  you  ever  read  Wendell  Phillip's  essay  on  the  lost  arts?  We 
all  ought  to  read  it  whenever  we  begin  to  feel  too  proud  of  our 
superiority  over  the  other  ages  of  the  world.  It  shows  that  many 
of  our  discoveries  are  rediscoveries  and  much  that  we  think  is 
new  is  really  old.  The  work  in  this  Italian  pavilion  ought  to  make 
us  humble  and  remind  us  of  how  much  we  owe  to  the  past  and  of 
how  much  we  owe  to  a  nation  like  Italy,  that  has  kept  the  torch 
of  beauty  flaming  for  the  benefit  of  civilization." 

When  we  reached  the  group  of  the  woman  and  the  child,  by 
Carl  Augustus  Heber,  at  the  northern  end  of  the  colonnade,  for 
the  first  time  we  caught  the  note  of  feminism.  "That  woman, 
struggling  to  free  herself  from  her  bonds,  tells  the  whole  story," 
said  the  painter.  "Those  other  women  express  the  attitude  of  the 
world  toward  women  since  the  pagan  days,  an  attitude  singularly 
consistent  through  the  centuries.  To  say  that  it  is  changed  now 
would  be  an  exaggeration.  It  is  changing.  So  far  it  has  not  ex- 
pressed itself  in  art  to  any  noticeable  degree." 


FIFTEEN  DISTINGUISHED  AMERICAN 
ARTISTS 


O  FIFTEEN  artists  was  assigned  special  hon- 
or. In  most  instances  each  was  given  a  room 
for  his  work,  or  more  than  one  room.  In  one 
instance  two  Californians  were  placed  together 
in  one  room.  The  work  of  all  these  men  is 
worth  studying  in  detail. 

WILLIAM  M.  CHASE 

Though  nearly  seventy,  William  M.  Chase 
maintains  his  indefatigable  activity.  He  has  great  love  of  his  work, 
which  imparts  itself  to  his  canvases.  Though  he  came  out  of  the 
Munich  school,  he  has  not  devoted  himself  to  the  darker  tones, 
perhaps  because  he  long  ago  felt  the  influence  of  France.  He  has  a 
fine  mind  and  an  eager  spirit,  and  he  has  expressed  himself  in 
many  forms  of  painting.  Among  his  portraits,  "The  Lady  with  the 
White  Shawl"  is  the  best  known.  Someone  has  said  that  it  may  yet 
become  a  classic,  remembered  for  its  many  fine  qualities  when  the 
work  of  the  other  painters  in  its  time  has  been  forgotten.  Chase  is 
a  master  of  still  life  painting.  His  room  contains  several  disting- 
uished examples.  He  has  long  been  a  great  force  in  the  teaching 
of  art  in  this  country. 

FRANK  DUVENECK 

A  realistic  study  of  this  master  among  American  painters  by 
Joseph  De  Camp,  which  hangs  in  the  Duveneck  room,  shows  that, 
in  spite  of  sixty  odd  years,  Duveneck  is  still  physically  vigorous 
and  mentally  alert.  He  was  born  in  Covington,  Kentucky,  and  he 
spent  many  of  his  earlier  years  in  Munich,  where  he  became  con- 
spicuously identified  with  the  Munich  school  that  worshipped  the 
old  masters — Rembrandt,  Franz  Hals,  Velasquez.  Among  his  fel- 
low students  were  Chase  and  Currier.  He  developed  very  remark- 
able technical  skill,  conspicuously  shown  in  "The  Whistling  Boy" 
and  in  all  of  his  portraits.  He  rebelled  against  the  convention  es- 
tablished among  American  painters  of  working  from  a  crayon 
drawing,  and  worked  instead,  from  the  start  of  a  picture,  with  the 
brush.  After  teaching  ten  years  in  Munich,  he  settled  in  Cincin- 
nati, where  he  has  long  been  an  inspiring  influence  to  many  stu- 
dents. When  his  wife  died  a  few  years  ago,  he  abandoned  paint- 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  63 

ing  altogether,  and  devoted  himself  wholly  to  teaching.  The  only 
creative  work  that  he  did  afterward  was  the  designing  of  the 
sculptured  memorial  to  his  wife,  which  is  to  be  seen  in  the  Duve- 
neck  room — a  remarkable  piece  of  work. 

Duveneck  has  been  paid  the  unique  honor  of  having  a  special 
medal  cast  for  him  by  the  Panama-Pacific  International  Exposi- 
tion for  his  great  services  to  art. 

JOHN  McCLURE  HAMILTON 

Among  American  painters  Hamilton  holds  a  high  place.  For 
nearly  thirty  years  he  has  lived  in  England,  and  he  has  won  many 
successes  in  exhibitions,  both  in  Europe  and  in  this  country.  His 
portrait  of  Gladstone  is  particularly  interesting.  His  pastels  are 
remarkable  for  their  boldness  and  their  grace. 

CHILDE  HASSAM 

As  a  youth  Hassam  left  his  native  Boston  and  went  to  France, 
where  the  impressionist  movement  was  slowly  making  its  way. 
He  became  one  of  its  most  enthusiastic  adherents,  and  has  been 
faithful  ever  since.  His  development  has  been  very  interesting. 
He  has  now  reached  a  mastery  of  his  technique,  which  displays  it- 
self in  outdoor  scenes  of  extraordinary  beauty  in  the  treatment 
of  light.  His  mural  in  the  Court  of  Palms  is  by  no  means  his  best 
work.  He  is  much  better  represented  in  the  collection  of  his  can- 
vas, which  include  some  magnificent  examples  of  outdoor  painting. 

WILLIAM  KEITH 

As  a  boy  Keith  left  his  native  Scotland  and  went  to  New  York. 
For  several  years  he  worked  in  New  York  as  a  wood  engraver. 
Then  he  settled  in  California.  During  the  pioneer  days  he  made 
enough  money  to  study  in  Munich.  He  was  influenced  by  the  Bar- 
bizon  school,  which  caused  him  to  fall  in  love  with  painting  dark 
pictures.  He  repeatedly  showed,  however,  that  he  could  work  ef- 
fectively in  lighter  colors.  Though  he  lived  through  the  period  of 
impressionism,  and  though  he  was  familiar  with  its  methods,  he 
adhered,  in  the  main,  to  the  dark  tone  canvases,  which  were  im- 
mensely popular  with  the  public.  In  1906,  in  the  San  Francisco 
fire,  he  lost  a  great  many  of  his  paintings.  At  the  time  of  his  death 
he  had  acquired  a  distinguished  position  among  American  land- 
scape artists. 


64  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

ARTHUR  MATHEWS 

In  boyhood  Arthur  Mathews  studied  art  in  San  Francisco.  Then 
he  spent  several  years  studying  in  Paris.  After  returning  to  San 
Francisco  he  devoted  himself  arduously  to  painting  and  to  teach- 
ing. He  is  now  recognized  as  one  of  the  most  brilliant  among 
American  mural  decorators.  His  work  has  a  fine  decorative  and 
poetic  quality.  He  is  the  only  San  Francisco  mural  painter  repre- 
sented in  the  courts  and  palaces  of  the  Exposition.  His  "Victori- 
ous Spirit,"  painted  for  the  Court  of  Palms,  is  admirable  for  its 
design,  color,  and  its  harmony  with  the  surroundings.  His  can- 
vases in  the  Fine  Arts  Palace  are  typical  of  his  accomplished  and 
highly  finished  method. 

FRANCIS  McCOMAS 

Though  McComas  was  born  in  Australia,  he  is  now  accepted 
as  a  Californian  on  account  of  his  long  residence  in  or  near  San 
Francisco,  and  on  account  of  his  talent  for  painting  California 
scenes.  He  excels  in  the  sensitive  interpretation  of  landscape.  In 
the  painting  of  trees  he  is  remarkably  successful. 

GARI  MELCHERS 

When  hardly  more  than  a  boy,  Gari  Melchers,  born  in  Michi- 
gan, of  Dutch  stock,  became  known  for  the  vigor  and  the  truth 
and  the  homely  sincerity  of  his  work.  For  many  years  he  has  been 
winning  honors  in  the  exhibits  in  this  country  and  in  Europe.  Of 
all  living  American  painters  he  is  said  to  be  the  most  popular 
abroad.  For  a  long  period  he  taught  in  Europe,  keeping  up  a 
steady  activity  with  the  brush  at  the  same  time.  The  pictures  in 
the  room  devoted  to  him  are  characteristic  of  his  style,  which  has 
not  essentially  changed  from  the  beginning.  It  expresses  a 
thoughtful,  kindly  temperament,  and  a  conscientious  and  untiring 
workmanship. 

JOSEPH  PENNELL 

For  many  years  Pennell  has  been  accepted  as  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  of  living  workers  in  black  and  white.  He  has  traveled 
widely  and  has  given  to  the  world  an  immense  number  of  draw- 
ings, all  characterized  by  fineness  of  perception  and  extraordinary 
technical  skill.  He  has  done  more  than  any  living  man  to  make  the 
world  perceive  the  beauty  of  design  in  machinery  and  in  aspects 
of  everyday  life.  His  sketches  of  Panama  are  included  among  his 
best  studies. 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  65 

HOWARD  PYLE 

This  popular  illustrator,  who  died  in  Florence  four  years  ago, 
did  a  vast  amount  of  splendid  work  and  gave  pleasure  to  many 
thousands  of  people.  He  had  a  bold  technique  and  a  superb  im- 
agination. Into  his  drawing  he  put  an  immense  amount  of  action 
and  sentiment.  The  two  rooms  devoted  to  him  show  the  wide 
range  of  his  talent.  During  his  active  life  he  made  a  profound  im- 
pression upon  the  minds  of  the  people  of  this  country  and  on  his 
students. 

EDWARD  W.  REDFIELD 

Among  all  the  American  painters  who,  through  a  residence  in 
Paris,  have  acquired  the  methods  of  French  impressionism,  Red- 
field  occupies  a  conspicuous  position.  He  lives  a  few  miles  out  of 
Philadelphia,  in  the  country,  where  he  devotes  himself  to  land- 
scape work.  He  has  a  special  fondness  for  winter  scenes,  which 
he  paints  with  great  brilliancy,  making  wonderful  reproductions 
of  atmospheric  effects.  His  canvases  have  long  been  popular 
among  collectors,  and  he  has  been  a  great  winner  of  honors  in 
the  exhibitions. 

JOHN  SINGER  SARGENT 

One  of  the  greatest  portrait-painters  of  his  time.  At  twenty- 
one  he  painted  a  portrait  of  his  teacher,  Carolus  Duran,  that  made 
a  sensation.  From  Velasquez  he  learned  much  in  the  way  of  tech- 
nique. He  excels  in  the  vigorous  presentation  of  character.  Some- 
times he  shows  that  he  is  a  rather  stern  observer.  His  portraits 
here  are  all  remarkable.  The  Madame  Gautreau  is  generally  ac- 
cepted as  a  masterpiece  of  painting.  The  left  arm  and  the  neck 
are  notably  well  done.  The  make-up  on  the  face  is  adroitly  sug- 
gested. The  portrait  of  Henry  James,  the  American  novelist, 
achieved  notoriety  through  being  slashed  by  a  militant  suffragette 
when  it  was  first  exhibited  in  London  a  few  years  ago.  The  por- 
trait-sketch of  Joseph  Jefferson  the  actor,  was  evidently  executed 
with  great  sympathy.  As  Jefferson  was  a  painter  of  ability,  Sar- 
gent must  have  known  that  he  had  a  sitter  with  a  full  appreciation 
of  his  work.  Of  late  he  has  given  up  portrait  painting  and  devoted 
himself  to  landscape. 

EDMUND  C.  TARBELL 

Though  still  in  middle  life,  for  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century 
Edmund  C.  Tarbell  has  been  famous  as  an  American  painter.  His 


66  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

pictures  have  been  eagerly  bought  and  at  high  prices,  and  he  has 
been  a  remarkably  successful  prize  winner.  He  is  best  known  for 
his  interior  scenes,  beautifully  lighted  and  finely  balanced.  His  style 
has  sureness,  refinement,  and  a  subtle  blend  of  realism  and  poetic 
beauty.  He  is  equally  successful  with  his  painting  of  textures  and 
of  the  human  figure. 

JOHN  H.  TWACHTMAN 

Among  the  many  pupils  of  Frank  Duveneck  a  high  place  is  held 
by  this  painter  of  poetic  landscapes.  He  was  born  in  Cincinnati, 
in  1853,  and,  as  a  young  man,  spent  several  years  of  study  in 
Europe,  most  of  them  in  Munich.  His  work  shows  a  singular  re- 
finement, and  expresses  a  temperament  sensitive  to  the  most  deli- 
cate effects  of  beauty.  He  died  in  his  fiftieth  year. 

JAMES  McNEILL  WHISTLER 

In  some  ways  Whistler  is  the  most  interesting  figure  in  modern 
art.  He  was  born  in  Lowell,  Massachusetts,  in  1834,  and  he  spent 
most  of  his  life  in  Europe.  As  a  youth  he  studied  in  Paris,  under 
Gleyre.  His  earlier  work  shows  the  influence  of  Courbet.  Through 
continual  investigating  and  experimenting  he  developed  a  remark- 
ably fine  technique  and  a  genius  for  spiritual  expression.  Few  men 
in  the  history  of  art  can  compare  with  him  for  his  delicate  ar- 
rangement of  color.  In  naming  his  pictures  he  liked  to  use  musi- 
cal terms.  It  has  been  said  of  his  work  that  it  would  be  easy  to 
give  it  musical  expression.  Just  as  musicians  are  sometimes  called 
tone  poets,  Whistler  may  be  called  a  poet  in  color  and  in  line.  His 
etchings  show  the  delicacy  that  characterizes  his  painting. 

In  everyday  life  Whistler  was  an  eccentric,  but  in  his  work  he 
had  a  remarkable  power  of  concentration  and  a  fine  devotion.  He 
was  continually  getting  into  complications,  both  financially  and 
personally.  His  life  by  the  Pennells  ought  to  be  read  by  anyone 
who  wishes  to  study  his  character. 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  67 

PAINTERS  AND  SCULPTORS  WHOSE  WORK 
OUGHT  TO  BE  NOTED 

PALACE  OF   FINE  ARTS 
Gallery 
66     Edgar  Walter,   Gertrude  Vanderbilt  Whitney,   Haley   Lever,   Bitter,   Calder, 

French,  Laessle,  Hering,  Seyffert,  Haggin. 
85     To  the  left:  Walker,  Stetson,  Hawthorne,  Calder,  Grafly. 

87  Duveneck  room,  paintings  and  sculptured  memorial.  Aitken. 

65     Devoted   to  the  work   of  women.    Cecilia   Beaux,   Mary  Curtis   Richardson, 
Jean  McLane,  Mary  Cassatt,  Scudder,  Vonnoh,  Eberle. 

54  Winslow  Homer   (interesting  development),  Currier,  Inness,  Harrison,  Wy- 

ant,  Ryder,  Grafly. 

55  Potthast,   Mannheim,   Wagner   (portrait  of  Stewart  Edward  White). 

56  Breuer,  Hitchcock,  Mary  Curtis  Richardson. 

57  Abbey,  John  La  Farge,  Theodore  Robinson. 

58  Bierstadt,  Eastman,  Johnson,  Rothermel,  Ward. 

64     Remington,  William  Morris  Hunt,  Hovenden,  Henry  Boughton,  Henry  (in- 
teresting example  of  old-fashioned  American  painting),  Hyatt,  Scudder. 

88  Redfield  room.  Ellerhusen. 

90  Keith  room. 

89  Tarbell's  interiors.  Bela  Pratt. 

93     Twachtman  room.  Manship  (fine  sculpture  inspired  by  the  old  Greek  work). 

91  Watteau  (not  a  good  example),  Steen,  Tintoretto  (questionable). 

92  Van  Gogh,   Daubigny,  Tissot,   Courbet,  Ziem,   Charles  Le  Brun,   Monticelli, 

Fortuny,  Corot,  Cazin,  Israels,  Ladd,  Polasek,  Manship,  Warner,  Wein- 
man, Van  Marcke. 

62  Dagnan-Bouveret    (by   some   critics   disliked   for   its  conventionality   and   its 

lack  of  real  spirituality,  and  for  the  monotony  of  its  treatment  and  for 
its  poor  quality  of  color;  by  others  admired  for  its  academic  finish), 
Lenbach,  Fortuny,  Millet  (early  work,  not  characteristic  of  this  painter 
of  peasants,  but  in  Millet's  spirit),  Monticelli,  Stackpole,  Muller,  Mora, 
Weinman,  Rumsey. 

63  Romney,  Reynolds,  Gainsborough,  Raeburn,  Tiepolo,  Goya,  Hogarth,  Turner, 

Dallin,  Kemeys,   Scudder,   Beachey. 

59  Woodville. 

60  Old  American  school:   Gilbert  Stuart,  Peale. 

61  Brilliant  gallery,   devoted  mainly  to  the   French  impressionists:    Monet,   La 

Touche,  Fechin,  Pissaro,  Sisley,  Renoir,  Carriere,  Puvis  de  Chavannes 
(one  of  the  four  works  from  which  were  painted  the  decorations  for  the 
city  of  Lyons,  very  characteristic  of  the  greatest  of  modern  mural 
painters),  Bail. 

29     Whistler's  etchings. 

28     Whistler's  paintings.  Polasek. 

26  Fortune,  Wyeth,  Smith,  Taylor,   Oakley. 

27  Reproductions. 

25     Pietro  and  Antoinetta  Fragiacomo,  Ciardi,  Carlandi,  Scattola,  Nicolini. 

24     Gioli,  Chiesa,  Sambo,  Callandra,  Ferro. 

23     D'Orsi   ("Your  Neighbor",  often  compared  with  "The  Man  with  the  Hoe", 

effective  but  theatrical),  Nono. 
22     Mancini,  Prini,  Noci. 


68  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Gallery 

21     Innocenti,  Tito  (Grand  Prize;  easily  the  strongest  in  technique  of  all  mod- 
ern Italian  painter*) ,  Ricci,  Coromaldi. 

19  Ferrari. 

20  Menocal. 

17     Roll,   Laurent,   Jeanniot,   Hanicotte,   Gumery,    Rodin    (bust  of   Falguiere  re- 
markable). 

16     Menard,  Pointelin,  Le  Sidaner,  Blanche,  Cottet. 

From  16  through   17  to   18:   Guillaume,   Flameng,   Lucien  Simon,   Charmoy, 
Pernot,  Dechenaud. 

13  Maurice  Denis,  Signac,  Degas,  Lepape,   Monet. 
12     Raffaelli,  Lepape. 

14  Sureda,    Flameng,    Le   Sidaner,    Henri,    Martin,    Besnard,    Darrieux,    Gillot, 

Blanche,  St.  Marceaux,  Sicard,  B.  Boutet  de  Monvel,  Delachaux. 

15  Gardier,    Lepape,    Besnard,    Lucien    Simon,    Maury,    Pierre,    Blanche,    Marie 

Cazin,  Aman  Jean. 
Japanese  Section: 

1  Taisei  Minakami,   Hoko  Morimura,  Ranshu  Dan. 

2  Kangai  Takakura. 
,3     Tozen  Oka. 

4  Goun  Namikawa  and  Torakichi  Narita  (screen),  Yetsutsaro  Yoshida,  Jinbei 

Kawashima  (brocade),  Bonkotsu  Igami,  Choun  Yamazaki,  Kozan  Miya- 
gawa  (Grand  Prize — porcelain  vase),  Hodo  Tomioka  (ivory  figure). 

5  Kwampo  (Kakemono). 

6  Koho  Goto  (screen  design). 

7  Tanyu  Kano. 

8  Ikka  Tashima,  Homei  Yoshida,  Osao  Watanabe. 
10     Kijiro  Ohta,  Eisaku  Wada,  Hachiro  Nakagawa. 
From  the  Japanese  section  to  the  black  and  white : 

30  Henry  Wolf,  Otto  Bacher,  Thomas  Moran,  Gertrude  Partington,  Mullgardt, 

Nahl,  Timothy  Cole,   Plowman. 

31  Joseph  Pennell   (very  interesting  room,  filled  with  the  work  of  a  master  in 

black  and  white). 

32  Piazzoni,  Caroline  Armington,   Frank  Armington,  Herman  A.  Webster,  Lee 

Randolph,  Pearson,  Smith,  Jolp  Sloan. 

33  Bertha  Jaques,  Covey,  Young,  White,  Lester  Hornby,  Stevens,  Horter,  Don- 

ald Shaw  MacLaughlan,  Lemos,  Levy,  Robert  Harshe,  Partridge,  John 
Marin,  Armin  Hansen,  Warner,  Ralph  Pearson,  Cadwalader,  Washburn, 
Aitken,  Konti. 

34  King,  Nordfeldt,   Clark  Hobart,  Bertha  Lum,  Helen  Hyde,  Senseney, 

Squires,  Hyatt. 

35  Dallin,  Ward,  Proctor. 

Through  gallery  66  to  gallery  80;   Metcalf,  Paxton,  Hale,  Bruce  Crane,  Calder, 

Kemeys. 
79     Chase  room,  two  remarkable  portraits   ("Whistler"  and  "The  Woman  with 

the  White  Shawl"),  and  fine  still-life. 

67  The   Carlsons,   Nielsen,    Rosen,   Paul   Daugherty,    Raphael,    Waugh,    Foster, 

Ochtman,  Arthur  Putnam  (fine  animal  sculpture),  Laessle,  Scudder, 
Partridge. 

68  Ritschel,  Johansen,  Cushing,  Garber,  Schofield,  Kroll,  Piazzoni,  Spencer  Bit- 

ter, Aitken,   MacNeil,   Fry,   Bateman. 
78     Childe  Hassam  room.   Polasek. 
77     Gari  Melchers  room.  Stackpole,  Ladd. 
76     Mathews  and  McComas  room. 

69  Funk,  Woodbury,   Lawton  Parker,  Jules  Pages,   Alexander,   Miller,   Young, 

Kemeys,  Deming,  Bishop. 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  69 

Gallery 
75     Sargent  room.  Mora,  Wright. 

73  Clark,  Paul  King,  Fortune,  Gifford  Beal,  Lawson,  Boyle,  Jaegers,  Warner, 

Muller,  Ladd. 

74  Yates,  Bruce  Nelson,  Cadenasso,   Konti. 

70  Wiles,   Flagg,   Story,   Yarrow,   Speicher,   Young,   Konti. 

71  Ritschel,    Rosen,    Fortune,    Luks,    Meakin,    Luis    Mora,    Reuterdahl,    Haley 

Lever,  Tiffany. 

72  Paddock,  Gertrude  Partington,  Van  Sloun,  Bohm,  Proctor. 

94  Lin  Hso,  Fu  Sushan,  Chen  Husi-Hsun. 

95  Teh  Hsin  Chen   (cloisonne),  Teh  Chang,  Lao  Tien  Li. 

96  Chang  Jui-tu. 

97  Shen  Huan,  Pien  Shou-mien. 

99  Ferdinand  Boberg,   Lundberg,   Knut  Jam   (interesting  bust  of  Strindberg), 

Edstrom,  Ahlberg. 

100  Liljefors  (Grand  Prize),  Smith,  Edstrom,   Gottfried  Larsson. 

102  Osslund,  Fjaestad,  Wrangle,  Schultzberg,   Carlberg. 

103  Strandberg,  Behm,  Schultzberg,   Hullgren. 

104  Kusel,  Strandberg,  John  Bauer. 

105  Hesselbom,   Elsa  Backlund  Celsing,   Kulle. 

106  Anna  Boberg. 

107  Fjaestad   (tapestry  made  by  two  sisters  of  Fjaestad  from  his  design),  Gott- 

fried Larsson. 

108  Schanze  Lavery  (the  only  example  of  one  of  the  greatest  of  modern  Brit- 

ish portrait  painters;  very  characteristic),  Kips,  Zugel,  Putz,  Stuck, 
Paul Troubetsky  (interesting  sculpture  in  spite  of  exaggerated  length; 
Lady  Constance  Richardson  very  fine). 

109  Malhoa  (Grand  Prize),  Vaz  Jor. 

110  Sousa,  Malhoa. 

111  Simoes,  Trigoso. 

112  Lagos,  Cullen,  Guide,  Bermudez,  Rossi,  Fader. 

113  Duyl-Schwartze,  Breitner,  Mesdag,  Witsen,  Bloemmers,  Bauer. 

114  Willy  Sluiter,  Mastenbroek,  Charles  Van  Wyk,  Van  der  Waay,  Maarel. 

115  Bauer,  Nieuwenkamp,  Isaac  Israels,  Charles  Van  Wyk. 

116  Walter. 

117  Frieseke  (Grand  Prize),  Nelson,  Cucuel,  Luis  Mora,  Fortune. 

118  Bohm,  Woolf,  Dewey,  Breuer,  Weinman. 

119  Keller,  Mura,  Wyeth,   Blumenschein,  Scudder,  Vonnoh. 

120  Bellows,  Luks,  Dabo,  Woodbury,  Ladd. 

Through  Holland,  Argentine,  Sweden,  China,  to  gallery  98. 
98     Hidalgo. 

43  Randolph,  F.  Melville  Du  Mond,  Dixon,  Mora,  James,  Martinez. 

44  Dunlap,  Seyffert,  Weinman. 
42     Pyle's  illustrated  paintings. 

41     Pyle's  pen  and  inks.  Borglum. 

45  Griffin,   Mora,   Robert  Reid,  Harrison,  Vonnoh,   Young,   King,  Roth. 

46  Reuterdahl,    Frank  Vincent   Du   Mond,   Eberle,   Young,   Constance   Macky, 

Whitney. 
40     Philip  Hale,  Milne,  Jules  Guerin,  Moser,  Preston,  French,  Robinson, 

Stackpole. 
39     McClure  Hamilton's  pastels. 

47  Raphael,  Couse,  Cooper,  Blumenschein,  Neuhaus,  Hering,  Salvatore. 

48  Frieseke  (good  example  of  early  work),  Rumsey. 
38     Kemeys. 

49  Weir,  Tryon,  Ladd,  Aitken,  Ellerhusen,  Kemeys,    McClure   Hamilton. 

50  Neilson,  Kendall,  Hansen,  Cornoyer,  Betty  de  Jong,  John  F.  Carlsen. 


70  THE  PALACE  OF  FINE  ARTS 

Gallery 

37     Woodbury,   Prendergast,   Murphy,   Alice   Schille,   Stetson,   Cooper,   Conant. 

36     Young,  Shinn,  Fortune,  Sandona,  Macky,  Dallin,  Deming. 

51     Robert    Henri,    Sloan,    Lambert,    Carles,    Glackens,    Breckenridge,    Laessle, 

Grafly. 

Fine  Arts  Annex. 
International  Section : 
On  entering :  Lipoth. 
Gallery  127  to  right:   Boreny,  Marffy. 

128  Bela  Uitz,  Vedres,  Teles. 

129  Pogany,  Rippl-Ronay,  Szekaly,  Vedres,  Vadasy. 

130  Brangwyn's  etchings,  John  Quincy  Adams. 

131  Brangwyn. 

149  Munch,  lithographs  and  etchings. 

150  Pola,  Gaugain,  Thaulow,  Lange. 
135  Simay,  Batthyanyi,  Pick  Lajos. 

132  Spanish,  Canto,  Bilbao,  Monegal  Prat. 

124  Hungarian,  Csok,  Mark. 

125  Hungarian,  Vaszary,  Ziffer,  Mark. 

121  Hungarian,  Lajos,  Lotz,  Munkacsy. 

122  Hungarian,  Nagv,  Kaziany,  Magyar  Mannheimer. 

123  Raab,  Rudnay,  Tibor. 

133  Spanish,  Vazquez,  Mallol,  Bilbao. 

134  De  Zubiaurre,  Meifren,  Cardona. 

Upstairs  to  gallery  136:  Gallen  Kallela  has  a  large  decoration  on  the  land- 
ing. Very  interesting  screen  and  rugs  at  the  head  of  the  stairs :  Kor- 
mendi  Frimm. 

Turn  right  to  gallery  137:  Room  devoted  to  Besnard.  Poupelet. 

138  Gallen  Kallela. 

140  Speed,  Sauter,  Draper. 

139  Haweis,  Goodman,  Simpson,  Laura  Knight,  Olsson. 

141  Italian  Futurists:   Balla,  Boccioni,  Carra,  Severini,  Russolo. 

142  Kokoschka,  Jungnickel. 

Through  the  hallway,  gallery  143,  Resales,  to  gallery  144:  Norway,  Brun. 
Svarstad,  Tunold,  Holmboe,  St.  Lerche. 

145  Salvesen,  Lund,  Munch,  Hans  St.  Lerche,  Vik,  Tola  Gaugain. 

146  Thaulow,  Diercks. 

147  Lund,  Krogh,  Strom,  Sorensen,  Vik. 

148  Muller. 

The  French  Pavilion: 

On  entering  right  and  left  of  the  door  are  paintings  by  Cazin;  center, 
Bouchier,  tapestries  designed  by  Tapissier,  Rochegrosse,  Jean  Paul  Laurens. 
Enter  room  to  left:  Cachoud,  Ribot,  Dehodencq. 

Upstairs:  Vallon,  Carli,  and  continue  on.  Paintings  by  Raffaelli,  Bastien 
Lepage,  Roll,  Renoir,  Cezanne,  Baudry,  Monet,  Cabanel,  Carriere,  Mettling, 
Bonnat,  Detaille,  Toulouse  Lautrec,  Gaugain,  Henner,  Pissaro,  de  Neuville, 
Chavannes. 

Into  room  to  right:  Latouche,  Barbier,  Brissaud,  Lepape,  B.  Boutet  de 
Monvel,  Henri  Martin,  Denis,  Bartholome,  Bouchard. 

To  left  into  room  adjoining:  Manet,  Carriere,  Harpignes,  Monticelli,  Meis- 
sonier,  Besnard,  Morot,  Fantin  Latour  Renoir,  J.  P.  Laurens,  Degas  Lepere, 
Bpudin,  Tissot,  Dechenaud,  Moreau,  Carolos  Duran,  Benj.  Constant,  Chavannes, 
Ziem,  Breton,  Bonnat,  Falguiere,  Rodin,  Dalou. 

Back  to  main  central  hall:  Rodin,  tapestries  after  drawings  of  Charles  Le 
Brun.  In  a  room  off  the  main  gallery:  Monet. 


FRENCH  AND  ITALIAN  PAVILIONS  71 

Gallery 

Belgian  section  of  French  Pavilion : 

Upper  room:  Julien  Celos. 

Into  lower  room:  Gilsoul,  Donnay,  Charlet,  Felicien  Rops,  Baertson,  Cas- 
siers,  Van  Rysselberghe,  Alfred  Stevens,  Meunier. 

The  Italian  Pavilion: 

Royal  Salon:  Winans. 

Vestibule:  De  Martino. 

Dining  Hall:  Barucci,  Cantagalli,  Frilli. 

Passage,  reception  room  to  right  (reproductions  of  Guido  Reni). 

Reception  room  to  left:   Bazzani. 

Reception  room:  Copies  of  old  masters. 

Pompeian  Museum:  Bazzani,  reproductions  of  classic  statuary — Dancing 
Faun,  Bust  of  Menelaus,  Bacchanal  Silenus,  Narcissus. 

Sacristy:   Reproductions  of  old  masters. 

To  the  right  to  the  Pantheon:   Ferrari,  Tofano. 


-  LIBRARY 


.THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 


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R  j:'d  UCB  ANTH 

NOV3    1982 

30m-l,'15 


Gaylord  Bros. 

Makers 

Syracuse,  N.  Y 
PAT.  JAN.  21 ,1908 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


